THE BLACKCAP AND WHITETHROA'^. loi 



secluded parts of his haunt, on the banks of the 

 trout stream meandering through the woods, where the 

 brambles and briars grow in uncurbed luxuriance ; so, 

 too, in the tangled hedgerows, and not unfrequently 

 amongst the dense shelter of the holly's foliage. It is 

 made of dry grass stems, leaf-stalks, a little moss, coarse 

 roots and cobwebs, and lined with a few horsehairs 

 The nest, although slight, and though it can be seen 

 through with the greatest ease, is compact and well built 

 and beautifully rounded. Man requires a pair of com- 

 passes to form a truthful circle, but this little creature, 

 aided by no contrivance save its bill and feet, forms a 

 circle beautifully true in all its measurements. Most 

 wonderful are the nests of the feathered tribe, and par- 

 ticularly so when minutely examined. Truly indeed are 

 they a study in themselves, fraught with the highest 

 interest. 1 he Blackcap's eggs are four or five in number, 

 sometimes only three, dull white in ground colour, 

 speckled and blotched with greenish-brown, and some- 

 times streaked with deep brown. The male bird often 

 sits upon the nest, probably as much as the female, and 

 we find that silence is the pnv\'er they most frequently 

 put in force for the protection of their eggs or young, 

 although the female bird will often use pugnacious 

 motions, approaching an intruder with ruffled feathers, 

 and uttering sharp hissing cries. When the young are 

 hatched, the parent birds become still more anxious, 

 and much of their habitual shyness disappears until their 

 offspring reach maturity. After the young are reared, 

 you seldom or never hear the male bird's song. But one 

 brood is reared in the year, and if their first nest is de- 

 stroyed a fresh one is made, but the eggs seldom exceed 

 three. 



The food of the Blackcap is not confined to insects 



