SYLVIADZ. 108 
account in Yarrell of the Nightingale breeding in 
confinement: the two parent birds were caught in 
England after their arrival in the spring, and after 
they had paired. 
The food of the Nightingale consists principally 
of insects, such as flies, moths and earwigs.* M. Pre- 
vost gives a long list of the various sorts of food of 
this bird; and for once I do not think the most dis- 
contented gardener can take exception to a single 
article in the whole lst, which is as follows:— 
“ February, grubs and worms; March, the same, and 
chrysalids and ground beetles; April, flies, meal- 
worms, beetles and red-worms; May, butterflies, 
weevils, cockchatfers and grubs; June, spiders and 
wood-boring beetles; July, worms, grubs, and eggs 
of locusts, grasshoppers, moths and flies; August, 
locusts, glow-worms, weevils and grubs; September, 
locusts, beetles, worms and dragonflies; October, 
grubs, worms and beetles; November, flies and 
worms.” After reading this list,—which, although 
M. Prevost’s observations were made in France, is 
like the rest of his lists, for the most part (except 
the winter months, in this case) applicable to this 
country,—we must all agree that it is a very great 
pity Nightingales are not more numerous, if it were 
only for the benefit they render by the destruction 
of noxious insects. 
———S$ eee 
* See Yarrell, vol. 1., p. 321. 
