2i8 BRITISH BIRDS 



THE WAXWING. 



This bird, often absurdly called the Bohemian Chatterer, 

 is a winter visitant to the British Isles, and has its home 

 within the Arctic Circle, whence it migrates south in the 

 winter, sometimes occurring here in considerable numbers. 



It is about the size of a Thrush, but being very thickly 

 covered with soft feathers of a silky texture, looks larger. 

 The head is ornamented with a kind of crest. The 

 general colour is reddish-ash on the upper surface, and 

 five or six of the secondaries are tipped with litde bits of 

 a red substance, that looks much like sealing-wax, whence 

 the name Waxwing. 



The throat, eye-streak, wings, and tail are almost black, 

 and the two last are tipped with yellow. 



There is no instance of these birds having bred here, 

 and as a rule they are very impatient of heat. They feed 

 on seeds, berries and insects, and soon get tame. 



THE WHEATEAR. 



This pretty bird, which is one of our summer visitants, 

 is about 5^ inches in length, i^ inches of which belong 

 to the tail. The bill is very dark horn colour; the forehead, 

 greyish- white deepening to slate-grey on the nape ; a white 

 streak surmounts the eye, which is surrounded by a black 

 patch of irregular shape ; the back is brownish-grey, shading 

 to lighter grey at the sides ; the wings are dark brownish- 

 grey; the greater wing coverts are slightly edged with yellow; 

 the chin, white ; neck, breast, and upper part of abdomen, 

 orange-brown; vent, white; the central pair of tail-feathers 

 are blackish, but the rest are white with dark tips; the 

 rump is white, and the legs and feet dark grey. 



The female is reddish-grey on the back. 



The young are spotted with orange on a dark ground, 

 something after the manner of young Robin Redbreasts. 



White, buff, and variegated specimens have been occa- 

 sionally met with. 



The Wheatear is a European species and is fairly abun- 



