210 BRITISH BIRDS. 
last Wagtail to arrive, it is the first to leave, most of them having disap- 
peared by the middle of September. Every meadow in Holland abounds 
with these charming little birds, running along the banks of the dykes or 
among the grazing cattle, and occasionally perching on the wooden boun- 
dary-posts, whence they will suddenly take wing to catch a passing fly. 
But perhaps their beauty is seen to still greater advantage on the marshy 
banks of ‘the lower Danube, where the brilliant sunshine gilds the deep 
rich yellow of their breasts as they sit on the top of a willow or tall thistle, 
or other rank herbage which flourishes in this semi-tropical climate, dis- 
playing the white outside feathers of their quivering tails as they balance 
themselves on their uncertain perch. 
The habits of the Blue-headed Wagtail are very similar to those of the 
other Wagtails. It is partial to swamps, and frequents wet grass-lands, 
especially meadows containing cattle. In these situations it may be seen 
running hither and thither, incessantly beating its tail up and down, and 
feeding in the same manner as the other Wagtails. Its flight is also per- 
formed in a succession of droops or long curves. 
The song of this bird, like that of its congeners, is scarcely more than 
a musical twitter. Its common call-note is a chit-up, similar to that of 
the Yellow Wagtail, but certainly shriller than that of the Pied Wagtail. It 
has also a prolonged plaintive double note, occasionally heard when the bird 
is perched. The food of the Blue-headed Wagtail is composed of insects, 
beetles, small freshwater mollusca, caterpillars, and grubs. 
The Blue-headed Wagtail is a rather late breeder, and its eggs are 
seldom laid before the middle or latter end of May, often not until the 
beginning of June, so that probably one brood only is reared in a season. 
The nest is built on the ground, and is generally well concealed amongst 
rank herbage. A bank is a favourite situation, beneath a tuft of grass or 
amongst the gnarled and half-exposed roots of trees standing in open fields. 
The nest is made of dry grass, rootlets, and scraps of moss, and lined with 
fine bents, hair, and sometimes a little wool, and more rarely a few feathers. 
The eggs are from five to six in number, yellowish white or pale bluish 
white in ground-colour, mottled, spotted, freckled, and clouded with pale 
brown, and sometimes streaked on the larger end with rich blackish brown. 
They vary in length from -83 to ‘73 inch, and in breadth from ‘59 to 
‘53 inch. Many of the eggs of this bird are absolutely indistinguishable 
from those of the Yellow Wagtail and the Grey Wagtail. 
The Blue-headed Wagtail often joins flocks of the Yellow Wagtail, and 
there can be no doubt that the two birds often keep company during 
winter. The most northern birds generally quit their haunts in August 
and September, retreating slowly southwards. 
The adult male Blue-headed Wagtail in breeding-plumage resembles the 
other British Wagtails in the colour of the wings, wing-coverts, and tail. 
