40 BRITISH BIRDS. 



interesting species will realize my joy at seeing it contained 

 three eggs, unmistakably those of the Marsh- Warbler. 



The birds came very near and I imagined I could see 

 all sorts of differences distinguishing them from the 

 Reed-Warbler, not differences of colour and markings, 

 but of carriage and movement and temperament. They 

 did not hold themselves so smartly, and they were less 

 sharp and fussy in their expressions of impatience at 

 my presence than are Reed- Warblers under similar con- 

 ditions. Those who know the Marsh-Warbler well, and 

 who read these notes, will be able to judge how much of 

 this was due to my imagination. Three days afterwards, 

 when the nest contained five eggs, I took several photo- 

 graphs of it, not only from above showing the eggs (Fig. 1), 

 but also from the side to show the method of attachment to 

 the herbage (Fig. 2). This last shows also the extremely 

 fragile structure of the nest, as one egg is clearly visible 

 through the nest-wall. From the behaviour of the 

 female and from my experience with Sedge- and Reed- 

 Warblers, I have no doubt that it would not have been 

 a difficult matter to photograph the bird, but I preferred 

 to wait until the young were hatched, when there would 

 be less danger of causing the birds to desert, and the 

 interest in the photographs would be enhanced. Although 

 it happened that I was a loser by then abstaining from 

 an attempt to photograph the birds, I am quite satisfied 

 that from every point but that of getting a photograph 

 at all hazards, it was the proper course to take. When 

 I next visited the locality, on July 8th, having allowed 

 time for the young to hatch, it was to find the nest 

 empty and dishevelled. The birds were still there, and 

 the fact that the female had lost most of her tail-feathers, 

 coupled with the disarrangement of the nest, pointed 

 to a rat or other natural enemy as the marauder. 



As the birds still exhibited interest in this part of the 

 copse, I searched the herbage and found another nest, 

 built but not lined. It was clearly the nest of the same 

 pair of birds. Heavy and continuous rain fell on the 



