316 BRITAIN'S BIRDS AND THEIR NESTS. 



to the British Isles, but it does not usually appear till 

 towards mid -April, and is correspondingly later in the 

 north. During the summer it is widely distributed 

 over Great Britain and the northern half of Ireland, 

 breeding in many of the outlying Scottish isles. To 

 the south of Ireland and some western parts of England 

 and Wales it is chiefly known as a migrant. Like 

 other Chats, it frequents waste lands of various kinds, 

 showing, as the name implies, a preference for furze- 

 covered tracts. 



The nest is generally under a whin -bush, less often 

 among grass, and is usually approached by a tunnel of 

 over a foot in length. Owing to the nature of the 

 cover and the careful concealment of the nest, it can 

 rarely be found except by carefully noting the hen- 

 bird's entry into the tunnel, about which she is very 

 wary. Dry grass and moss outside, hair and fine 

 grass inside, are the chief materials of which the nest 

 is constructed. The four or five eggs are greenish blue, 

 spotted with reddish brown, especially towards the larger 

 end. Two broods are reared as a rule. 



THE STONECHAT 



(Pratincola rubicola). 



Plate 118. 



Often, as we chance to pass some comer of waste ground, 

 our attention is attracted by a sound like that made by 

 two pebbles sharply brought together ; and, turning, we 

 see a brightly coloured little bird boldly perched on a 

 spray of furze a few yards away. Bold but restless, he 

 continually changes his perch, but shows a marked pre- 



