BLACKCAP 493 



upper and under tail-coverts barred, is a native of southern and 

 central Europe, which visits Africa in winter, and crosses Asia Minor 

 on migration. It is merely a casual visitor to the British Islands 

 during the autumn-migration, only nineteen instances of its occurrence 

 being recorded up to the }-ear 1900; the first some time previous to 

 1879, and the rest during the last twenty years of the century. Of 

 these occurrences England claims the majority, mostly from the 

 eastern counties, Ireland having two ; one bird was killed in Skye, 

 and another example taken in the Hebrides in i 900. Eive specimens 

 were recorded during the first seven years of the present century, 

 thus bringing the number up to twenty-four. 



Considerable doubt has been expressed as to occurrences in Great 

 Britain of the Orpheus, or Orphean warbler {Sy/via orp/ieits), a central 

 and south European species, wintering in Africa and India, the Indian 

 race being, however, often separated as S.jcrdoni. It is a larger bird 

 than the whitethroat, rivalling in size the blackcap, from which it is 

 distinguishable at all seasons by the white, in place of grey, throat. 

 One of a pair is stated to have been killed in Yorkshire in i 849, and 

 a young specimen was captured alive in Middlesex in 1866 ; but doubts 

 have been expressed as to whether either of these instances gives a 

 claim to the inclusion of this species in the list of British stragglers. 

 The alleged nesting of this warbler in England on one occasion is 

 almost certainly based on error. In 1903 an undoubtedly wild 

 example of the species was, however, taken in Sussex, while a second 

 one was picked up dead in the same county two years later. 



Of another south European member of the present group, 

 commonly known as the sub-alpine warbler {Sylvia siibalpina), a single 

 example was taken, curiously enough, in the summer of i 894 in St, 

 Kilda, where it had probably been driven by a violent gale. 



BlaekeaD With the familiar and easily recognised blackcap, we 



(Sylvia atrieapilla) ^'^^'^''t ^o the consideration of regular summer-visitors 

 to the British Islands, where, however, the present 

 species is occasionally seen during the winter. The black crown of the 

 head serves to distinguish the adult male blackcap from all other warblers 

 except the Orpheus warbler, in which, as already stated, the throat is 

 white instead of grey ; but another important characteristic of the 

 species is the circumstance that the first primary quill is a fraction 

 longer than the overlying coverts. The upper-parts of the cock, exclu- 

 sive of the skull-cap, are light olive-brown passing into grey towards 

 the tail-coverts, while the undcr-parts are mainly ash}' white. In the 



