AxTHus. BIRDS. PASSERES. 75 



beneath, the lighter parts are yellowish, and the coverts of the wings more 

 deej)ly margined with light brown ; the legs more inclining to yellow. Seeks 

 its food as the tide retires. 



77. A. pratensis. Meadow Titling;. — Hind claw longer 



than the toe, and but shghtly bent. From tlie gape on each 



side a dusky hne passes down the side of the throat. 



Alauda pi-atorum. Will. Orn. 150. Sibh. Scot. 17- Al. pratensis, Linn. 

 Syst. i. 287 — Titlark, Penn. Brit. Zool. i. 357 — Anth. prat. Temnu 

 Orn. i. 2G9 — Common near marshes. 



Length b% inches ; weight upAvards of half an ounce. Bill dusky, A^ellowish 

 at the base of the lower mandible. Legs brownish. Plumage, above, dusky- 

 brown, with ])aler margins, beneath dirty white, the sides of the neck and 

 breast marked with oblong dusky spots. Quills dusky brown, with paler 

 edges, the first four, according to Willoughby, of equal length. Tail dusky, 

 outer feather white, except at the base of the inner web ; the second has a lit- 

 tle white at the jjoint. In winter the pale margins of the plumage, above, are 

 broader, and have more of an olive tinge. In this state it is the Pipit Lark of 

 Mont. Orn. Diet. Female very like the male. Nest on the ground ; of 

 dried grass, lined Avith hair. Eggs 6, variable in colour. The young birds 

 have the margin of the feathers of a greenish tinge. 



78. A. trivial'is. Field Titling. — Hind-claw shorter than 

 the toe, and muched hooked. Two yellowish-white bands on 

 the wings. 



Alauda minor campestris. Will. Orn. 150 — AL triv. Liiin. Syst. i. 288. — 

 Field Lark, Pcnn. Brit. Zool. i. 358. — An. arboreus, Temm. Orn. i. 

 271. — A summer visitant of England. 

 Length 6;^ inches ; weight 5 drams. Bill dusky above, whitish beneath. 

 Ijegs yellowish-brown ; claws horn colour. Irides hazel. Plumage, above, 

 light yellowish-brown, with the middle of each feather dusky-brown. Rump 

 plain light brown. Wing-covers tipped with white. Throat and breast ochra- 

 ceous yellow ; belly yellowish-white. Tail-feathers pointed, the exterior 

 one-half white, the rest with the tip slightly Avhite. Nest of dry grass and 

 moss, lined with hair ; placed amongst high grass or green wheat. Eggs 4, 

 dirty bluish-white, thickly blotched and spotted with purplish-brown. Chiefly 

 frequents enclosed districts ; and, according to Montagu, " from the begin- 

 ning of INIay to July, it may be seen mounting in the air in a fluttering man- 

 ner, at the same time uttering a twittering note, and then descends to some 

 neighbouring tree, with motionless vving and the tail thrown up. At this time 

 it sings, but never when rising. And it is observable, that it rarel}' pitches 

 on the ground again until it has perched ; and it always mounts in the like 

 manner from a tree before it descends to the ground." — Mont. Orn. Diet. 



Anthiis RichcD-di, (Temm. Orn. i. 263.). It is stated in the proceedings of 

 the Linnean Society, in the " Annals of Philosophy " for jNIarch 1825, p. 22G., 

 that Mr Vigors described three species of British Birds, of which A. llichardi 

 was one ; " two specimens of which were taken a few years ago at Kingsland, 

 near London." In the paper, howevei", in which this species seems originally 

 to have been included, published in Lin. Trans, xiv. 556, no notice is taken 

 of the bird. 



Gen. XXXVII. LOXIA.— Bill compressed; both mandi- 

 bles with hooked points, crossing each other at the plane 

 of the gape. 



