WARBLERS. 103 



The typical form of this sub-family is the Yellow Megalurus ' Mcgalu- 

 riis cttrinus). 



Sub-Family II. 

 THE WARBLERS PROPER. LUSCININ/E. 



General Characteristics. — Bill more or less long, slender, and straight, with the 

 culmen curved at the tip, which is slightly emarginated ; the sides compressed, and 

 the gonys long and ascending ; the nostrils basal, and placed in a membranous 

 groove, with the opening usually exposed ; the wings moderate, and sometimes 

 rounded ; the tail moderate and rounded at the end ; the tarsi more or less length- 

 ened, slender, and covered with broad scales, the divisions of which are sometimes 

 obliterated ; the toes more or less long, slender, and covered with broad scales, the 

 divisions of which are sometimes indistinct, the outer toe generally longer than the 

 inner, and united at its base ; the claws long, curved, and acute. 



The species that compose this sub-family are pecuhar to the 

 Old World, and are migratory at certain seasons of the year. 

 They are usually seen in woods and thickets, in which they hide 

 themselves, and through which when alarmed they flit with great 

 swiftness. They search actively among the leaves for insects ; 

 they also feed on the seeds of the ivy and other soft berries. 

 Some place themselves on the summit of a bush, and pour forth 

 at intervals their clear and well-defined notes ; others utter their 

 song on the wing, as they rise from the ground to a great eleva- 

 tion in the air, and then return slov/ly to the spot whence they 

 had started. They build their nests in low bushes or among 

 nettles, constructing them with the stems of plants, and lining 

 the interior with hair and fine fibres of roots. The eggs are gene- 

 rally four in number. 



The type of this musical sub-family is — 



The Nightingale {Philotnela luscinia). This " Queen of Song " is by no 

 means remarkable for the beauty of its plumage, although most elegant in 

 shape. Its general colour is brown, tinged with red above and dullish grey- 

 white beneath. The Nightingale arrives in this country about the middle of 

 April, the males making their appearance a few days sooner than their mates. 

 They are not found in the extreme west parts of England, nor in Ireland, 

 and they do not penetrate farther northward than Yorkshire, although on the 

 continent they are seen in Sweden. They frequent woods, plantations, and, 

 orchards, and feed on insects and spiders. The observations of JMr. Gould, 

 respecting the migrations of the nightingale, lead him to the conclusion that 

 after leaving England, it proceeds to the opposite shores of the continent, and 

 gradually makes its way southward until it arrives in Africa, which is its ulti- 

 mate resting-place during our winter months. In Africa, moreover, it seems 

 to be confined to the northern districts, never having been obtained from the 

 central or southern parts of that continent. In no part of Europe is it more 



