124 BRITISH BIRDS' NESTS. 



beak, and irides yellow. Head, neck, back, wings, 

 and upper side of tail bluish or asli grey, except 

 the wing-primaries, which are almost black. Some 

 specimens have a mottled, rusty-brown spot on 

 the nape. Chin, throat, breast, and belly bluish- 

 grey, much lighter on the latter parts. Thighs, 

 vent, and under tail-coverts white. Under side 

 of tail-quills very light grey, faintly barred with 

 a darker tinge. Legs and toes yellow ; claws 

 black. 



The female measures about four inches longer ; 

 her bill is nearly black, and the bare skin round 

 the base tinged with green. Irides reddish-brown. 

 Crown and back of neck dark brown ; round the 

 face is a kind of ruff, the feathers of which are a 

 mixture of brown and white. Back and wings umber- 

 brown, except some of the coverts, which are edged 

 with rufous, and the primaries, which are of a dusky 

 colour. The tail-quills are dark brown tipped with 

 rusty-red ; the centre ones uniform in colour, and 

 those on the sides barred with lighter rusty-brown. 

 Throat and all the under parts reddish-buff, with a 

 darker patch in the centre of each feather. Tail- 

 feathers underneath barred with brownish-black and 

 grey. 



Situation and Localitij. — On the ground, amongst 

 tall heather, furze, and other bushes ; on moors, 

 commons, fens, and on wild, lonely mountain-sides. 

 Its destructive habits amongst game birds have 

 made the gamekeeper an especial enemy, and he 

 has waged incessant war upon it for so long that 

 it is now almost exterminated in England. It is 

 said to breed in Cornwall, Devon, Somerset and 

 one or two other western counties, Wales, and the 

 North of England occasionally. Its nest occurs 

 most frequently in the Hebrides, Orkneys, and 



