§7 



TLbc Spotted jflvcatcber."^ 



By J. Lkwis Boniiot]-:. 



" w ^ j ^ HE Spotted Flycatcher ( Micscicapa grisola, 



(^(7\ Linn-) i-s a bird with which all readers of 



X^y our Magazine must be familiar, as it sits on a 



post or some railings, darling down every few 



seconds at a fl}', and returning again to the same 



perch. 



In this countr}^ it is a Summer migrant, arriving 

 about the end of April and leaving again in August. 

 The nest, built chiefly of moss and cobwebs and lined 

 with horsehair and feathers, is placed in any conve- 

 nient situation, often in ivy growing up a tree; some- 

 times in old barns, dovecots, or on the projecting end 

 of a beam : whence the countr}^ name, ' Beam Bird,' 

 is derived. 



Three years ago a pair took up their abode in a 

 box placed over one of the pigeon holes in my loft. 

 The nest took eight daj'S to complete. During the 

 first three days they collected a quantity of rough 

 material, such as moss, cobwebs, pieces of bark, etc. 

 On tli^ two following days, these were somewhat 

 moulded into shape, and by the sixth day, the lining 

 was begun ; this consisted or bits of dried grass and 

 feathers. The nest was completed on the eighth day ; 

 during the following day the hen sat on the nest, and 

 the first Qgg was laid on the tenth. After this an o^gg 

 followed regular!}^ every morning till the full comple- 

 ment of five had been laid. 



The eggs are of a pale blue colour, thickly blotched 

 with rust red ; in some specimens the markings are 

 very indistinct, or even entirely absent. 



It is noticeable that during the building and incu- 



* Reprinted from the Avictdttcral Magazines Vol. I. (now out of print), by 

 permission of the Autlior. 



