516 REPTILES AND BIRDS, 
teristics of the bird with a few graphic touches. He has left his 
_downy couch, and sallied forth to watch the eventful moment when 
Nature arises, fresh, blooming, and full of renovated vigour. In his 
wanderings he comes upon ‘a Nightingale. ‘‘In the midst of a 
thicket,” he says, ‘I now see a solitary bird, humble in its attire, and 
of most modest mien, peeping at me with a caution so uncommon, 
and yet so inviting, that I feel tempted to seek its acquaintance. 
With care I approach the feathered stranger. Its form is somewhat 
elongated, yet not incompact ; its eyes are large, and of peculiar 
mildness ; it stands rather high, on a pair of light flesh-coloured and, 
as it were, transparent legs ; its wings, which are of moderate length, 
droop, and seem at intervals to tremble ; and, as it moves from one 
twig to another, I see it hops, or leaps, and does not walk step by 
step, like many other birds. Its colour is a dull brownish olive, but 
the hind part of the back and the tail are of a richer tint, though 
corresponding with the general hue. At this moment it flies lightly 
to the ground, hops a few steps, picks up a grub, and returns to its 
former station.” 
“The Nightingale,” says McGillivray, ‘‘ which in summer is spread 
over the greater part of the Continent, extending its migrations to 
Sweden and the temperate parts of Russia, arrives in the South of 
England about the middle of April, or a few days later, should the 
weather be severe. The females, according to various observers, 
come from a week to ten days after the males. Individuals settle in 
the southern counties, including part of Devonshire, in the eastern 
and midland districts, as far north as York and Carlisle; but none 
are to be seen in Cornwall, Wales, or the north-western parts of 
England, although it is found much farther north on the Continent.” 
It is alleged that the migration of the Nightingale does not extend 
into Scotland. Mr. Duncan, one of Mr. McGillivray’s most reliable 
correspondents, states that a pair of Nightingales arrived in Calder 
Wood, in West Lothian, in the early part of the summer of 1826. 
‘Before and about midnight, when the full moon shone bright and 
clear, the warble of the male was first heard; it soon attracted a 
number of admiring listeners, who hastened to the spot. The owner 
of the wood was anxious to preserve them, thinking they might 
breed ; but, in spite of his care, the male was shot, upon which the 
female left the wood.” In France they arrive singly, and depart 
alone about the middle of August, on their return journey to Africa 
or Asia. 
The Sedge Warbler (Sadicaria phragmites) is a delicate, lively little 
bird, haunting the margins of streams and pools overgrown with 
