KOBIN REDBREAST. 265 



the breast, are yellowish red. A line of ash-grey extends from 

 the forehead over the upper eyelid and down the side of the 

 neck, expanding and terminating on the side of the thorax. 

 The middle pectoral and abdominal feathers are greyish-white, 

 those of the sides dull yellowish ; the lower wing-coverts grey, 

 tinged with yellowish-red. The concealed part of all the 

 feathers is greyish-black, the shafts whitish. 



Length to end of tail 6^2 inches ; extent of wings 9 ; wing 

 from flexure 2}! ; tail 2^ ; bill along the ridge ^^, along the 

 edge of lower mandible ^^ ; tarsus 1 j*^ ; first toe y^, its claw 

 |i ; second toe /j, its claw /^ ; third toe l\. its claw /^ ' 

 fourth toe H, its claw /g. 



Female. — The female differs very little from the male. The 

 red on the neck is somewhat paler, the longitudinal grey band 

 less distinct, and the upper parts are tinged with grey. 



Length to end of tail o^-^ inches ; extent of wings 9. 



Variations. — Individuals of a greyish or yellowish-white, 

 and others with some of the feathers white, are rarely met 

 with. Adult individuals in perfect plumage vary slightly in the 

 tint of the upper parts, as well as in that of the fore-neck. 



Changes. — As the plumage becomes old, the olive-green of 

 the upper parts becomes tinged with grey, and the wings and 

 tail assume a bleached appearance, while the red of the neck 

 acquires a lighter or more yellowish tint. 



Habits. — The lively, pert, pugnacious, and cheerful Robin, 

 doubtless merits a more able biographer than he whose duty it 

 is here to describe its mode of life ; but, leaving the poetry of 

 its history to those whose delight is in the marvellous and dis- 

 torted, let us walk abroad to look on nature as she is. It is 

 now the end of September ; the corn is nearly all secured, most 

 of the wild flowers have faded, the woods begin to assume a 

 yellow tint, and the hot days are succeeded by chilly evenings, 

 the still soft and humid air of which imparts a feeling of reno- 

 vated vigour. In the gardens, along the hedges, and about the 



