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The Starlings nest in great numbers in the ivy which 
covers the house, and in the fruit season undoubtedly do 
great damage in the orchard. There seems no limit to 
their appetite, and a small flock will strip a cherry-tree in 
a surprisingly short time. I have frequently been enter- 
tained watching these birds mob a cat, which climbs 
the ivy in search of the young birds. An awful storm of 
abuse is poured out until the bewildered cat retreats and 
leaves the Starlings in possession. On many occasions the 
ivy has been visited by the Barn Owl. A pair of these 
birds used to breed in an old ash-tree, about three hundred 
yards from the house ; there was a large hole in the trunk. 
which formed their nesting-place for many years, until 
some time ago the tree fell, and since then they have not 
bred in the immediate neighbourhood. One frequently 
hears the weird shriek of this Owl on summer evenings, 
and it is very startling when close at hand. 
The sober-hued Hedge-Sparrow is very plentiful, and 
several pairs breed annually; and, as I write, a pair is 
bringing off a second clutch. All spring and summer this 
bird’s song swells the chorus here; and, in the winter, 
many join forces with the Sparrows and Finches in 
watching for crumbs of bread from the house. 
The Chaffinch is exceedingly common all through the 
year and fills the garden with his cheerful song. I have 
seldom found them breeding here, although nests are fairly 
numerous in the district. 
I had three pairs of Greenfinches under observation 
this year; in two cases the nests were built in a thorn-hedge, 
and were placed four to five feet from the ground. The 
third was in a pear tree, and was not so easy to watch as the 
others, for the leaves were thick and the nest sixteen feet 
up. The first nest was in a thin part of the hedge, and by 
pushing aside the hawthorn-twigs I was abie to get an 
uninterrupted view of the behaviour of the birds when 
feeding their young. 
About ten feet from this nest a pair of Chaffinches 
(Fringilla celebs) had built in the same hedge, and they 
were feeding six young birds; whilst the Greenfinches were 
providing for five. 
I never saw the Greenfinches make any attempt to 
remove the /gces of the nestlings, and the photograph shows 
_ the dirty condition of the nest after the young had flown. 
