THE STONECHAT 13 
motion, occasionally spring into the air after an insect, and then 
dart off with a dipping flight to another post of advantage. They 
repeat the call of ii-tick! and their short and simple song, both 
while at rest and on the wing; but they are not musical, and 
‘their flesh is generally more esteemed than their song.’ The 
Whinchat may be distinguished at a considerable distance by 
the white streak over the eye. Both nest and eggs of the two species 
are very similar. 
THE STONECHAT 
PRATINCOLA RUB{COLA 
Head, throat, bill and legs, black; sides of the neck near the wing, tertial 
wing-coverts and rump, white ; breast bright chestnut-red, shaded into 
yellowish white towards the tail; feathers of the back, wings and tail, 
black, with reddish brown edges. Female—feathers of the head and 
upper parts dusky brown. edged with yellowish red; throat black, with 
small whitish and reddish spots; less white in the wings and tail; the 
red of the breast dull. Length five and a quarter inches ; breadth eight 
and a half inches. Eggs pale blue, the larger end often faintly speckled 
with reddish brown. 
WE can scarcely pass through a furze-brake during the spring 
and summer months, without having the presence of the Stonechat 
almost forced on our notice. I am acquainted with no small bird 
whose -habits are more marked, or more easily observed. Not 
even does the Skylark build its nest more invariably on the ground, 
and ‘soaring sings, and singing soars’, than does the Stonechat 
build its nest in a furze-bush, and perch on the topmost twigs of 
shrubs. In the breeding season, too, it seems not to wander far 
from its home : we know therefore where a pair are to be found at 
any time ; and they allow us to approach so close to them, that we 
can readily distinguish them by the tints of their plumage. 
The nest of the pair may be within a few yards of the spot 
on which we are standing; but the exact locality no one knows, 
nor is likely to know but itself. The male is a beautiful creature, 
with a black head, red breast, and several patches of pure white 
on its wings, the female much more sober in her attire. Their 
purpose is evidently to distract our attention from their nest. 
One is clinging to the top of a Juniper, where he fidgets .about 
uttering his ¢wit-click-click, which you can easily imitate by whist- 
ling once sharply and knocking two stones together twice in rapid 
succession. Theotheris perched on the top spine of a furze-bush 
—they are aspiring birds and must settle on the ¢of of whatever 
they alight on, be it only a dock. Now one dips down and is lost 
for a few seconds, to appear again, however, directly on the summit 
of another bush; now they are on our right hand, now on our 
left ; now before us, and then behind. Are they describing a 
circle round their nest for a centre, or are they trying to trick us 
