34 BIRDS OF ICELAND 



ground, and is usually partly sheltered by a bush 

 of willow, and consists of a handful of Vaccinium 

 twigs in a slight hollow. I have seen, however, 

 several inaccessible nests in crags, and am inclined 

 to think that they are becoming cliff-breeders by a 

 process of natural elimination. The ground nests are 

 so systematically robbed that no Merlins but those 

 that have found out the manifest advantages of breed- 

 ing in a precipice get a chance to propagate their 

 species. The eggs are usually four in number, some- 

 times five. Fartlier south, as in England, six is not an 

 uncommon number, but many species seem to reduce 

 the number of eggs the farther north they range. 

 The eggs are roundish, about IJ inches long, reddish 

 white, spotted and blotched with bright rust red, often 

 so thickly that the spots are almost confluent. 



The female is brown above, with five pale bars 

 across the tail; underparts buf!y white, streaked, 

 except on the throat, with dull dark brown. Length 

 12 inches, wing 8 J inches. Young males resemble the 

 female, but turn bluer above on adolescence. Very 

 fine old males, clear blue-grey above, brown-striped 

 rufous below, but still keeping the white throat, are 

 occasionally to be met with. Length of male about 

 10 inches, wing 7i inches. 



The general food seems to be the Meadow Pipit, 

 but the Merlin is quite capable of tackling a larger 

 bird, and I have seen them paying undesired attentions 

 to the Eed wings ; once I saw a very fine flight indeed 

 at a snipe. 



