76 



THE NATURALIST. 



of a trained Orleans' plum in my 

 garden ; I took out an egg, which 

 at first sight I mistook for the egg 

 of a robin, but was soon undeceived 

 by a view of the parent bird. The 

 gardener's boy finding the nest took 

 it, and I lost the opportunity of 

 watching the bird, but gained the 

 information that it was the nest of 

 the " Wall-chat," a bird unknown to 

 me by that name. In May of the 

 same year, being on a visit to an old 

 friend at Kirby-Moorside, I had a 

 good opportunity of watching the 

 actions of this active little bird, for 

 a pair had built their nest on the 

 bough of a wall-pear-tree, and the 

 hen was sat on four eggs. Both 

 nests were outwardly composed of 

 bent and lined with hair, with here 

 and there a feather. The eggs were 

 of a dull white and spotted with faint 

 red, the spots being most numerous 

 on the thick end.- They were in 

 aj^pearance not unlike a robin's egg. 

 The cock was very attentive to the 

 female, often feeding her on the nest 

 and taking his share of the troubles 

 of incubation. As the nest was in full 

 view of the front kitchen window 

 and only three or four feet from it, 

 1 had ample oppoitunitics of watch- 

 ing them during my week's visit. 

 The male never visited the nest to 

 bring an insect but he flew back to 

 the head of one particular post in 

 the garden fence ; the same post 

 served also for a resting place from 



which he darted to catch the passing 

 insects, returning to the same spot 

 when he had caught them. In June 

 of the same year I found another nest 

 on the bough of a trained pear-tree ; 

 in this case the nest was externally 

 built of moss, of which there is a great 

 variety in the woods and on the banks 

 in the neighbourhood, and it was 

 lined with cow's hair. The support of 

 the espalier served for a roosting 

 place and a point to hawk from, and it 

 was pleasant to observe them flying 

 to and fro. The sitting birds were 

 very tame and in both cases allowed 

 me to stand within a yard without 

 leaving the nest. The pear-tree at 

 Kirby-Moorside has a nest in it 

 nearly every 3'ear, but I have not 

 been able to find one here since 

 1862, though I have carefully looked 

 for one. — J. Kanson, York. 



Late Nesting of the Yellowhammer 

 {Emberiza citrinella, Linn.) — The 

 Yellowhammer, or " Goldy," as the 

 Yorkshire boys call tliem, rear two 

 or thi'ee broods in a year, and the last 

 brood is frequently hatched so late 

 as September. A few years ago I 

 found a nest in a cornfield hedge, 

 upon the North Moors, so late as 

 the 28th of September. The young 

 ones were only just hatched. I 

 have frequently found them in 

 August, with eggs in. — Jno. Ean- 

 soN, York. 



Piebald Blackbird. — A beautiful 

 variety of the Blackbird (Twdus 



