The Chough 



the ends of the outer primaries being well separated from 

 each other ; its wings close, it drops towards the ground, 

 and then with a few more beats it recovers its former level 

 and continues its flight. This species, which is oidy found 

 on rocky coasts, is yearly becoming scarcer, but its chief 

 enemy, if we except the ubiquitous egg-collector, is one of 

 its own family, the Jackdaw. As this latter species extends 

 its breeding quarters, so the Chough has to give way before 

 it, being turned out of its nesting -holes till, weary of 

 ineffectual attempts, it leaves the locality. In other places 

 that king of Falcons, the Peregrine, will attack it, resulting in 

 its very rapid extermination. This, however, is apparently an 

 acquired taste on the part of certain Peregrines only, as we 

 have known both species to nest on the same cliff without 

 apparently interfering with each other in the least. 



Any hole or fissure in the rock, or the ledge of some 

 cliff, will provide this bird with a nesting-site, and a sub- 

 stantial cup-shaped structure of roots and twigs is built, and 

 lined with wool, rabbit fleck, and hair. Three to five eggs 

 are laid ; they are pale greyish white in colour, spotted and 

 streaked with grey or pale brown. Both parents attend to 

 the wants of their young, feeding them on larvae grubs and 

 beetles. This species is almost entirely an insect-feeder 

 and far less omnivorous than most of his kind, the long 

 curved beak being especially useful for poking the soft earth 

 or overturning the stones in its search for food. The note, 

 which is very frequently uttered, is not unlike that of the 

 Jackdaw but rather more metallic. 



The adult is of a deep, glossy blue black all over. Bill 

 and legs cherry red. The sexes are alike and the young 



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