170 BIRDS OF SOMERSETSHIRE. 
myself occasionally observed this bird. Since the 
time of Montagu the Cirl Bunting has been found 
in many other counties, and appears pretty generally 
spread over England, especially the southern part, 
but is nowhere very numerous. It is resident here 
throughout the year, in winter flocking with Yellow- 
hammers, Chaffinches and other small birds in farm- 
yards and stubble-fields. 
The food appears to consist of various small seeds 
and some sorts of grain, in choice of which, however, 
this bird appears to be rather particular, for Mon- 
tagu says that wheat and barley were rejected by 
some young birds which he had in confinement, but 
oats were greedily devoured after they had been 
dexterously and quickly deprived of their outer 
coats: insects also, especially the grasshopper, form 
part of the food, and the berries of the woody night- 
shade may also be added to the list.* 
The nest is generally placed in a bramble, furze, 
or some other low bush: it is made of dry stalks 
moss and roots, lined with hair. 
In plumage the Cirl Bunting is not so strikingly 
handsome as the Yellowhammer. ‘The females of 
the two species may easily be mistaken for each 
other. The male has the beak bluish lead-colour ; 
irides hazel; head and nape olive-green, with a few 
narrow streaks of dusky; there is a conspicuous 
* Yarrell, vol. 1.,:p. 521. 
