THE BIRD-LIFE OF LONDON 
More familiar still is che long-drawn note of peezh 
that may be heard with great persistency in the haunts 
affected by this species. During autumn and winter the 
Greenfinch is more or less gregarious, and even in spring 
and summer is very social, and several pairs may frequently 
be found nesting in close proximity. ‘These flocks resort to 
fields of mowing-grass, to the growing corn, and later to 
the stubbles. In sowing-time they visit the newly tilled 
land, and in hard weather may often be seen with 
Sparrows near ricks, in farmyards, and occasionally at 
our thresholds. ‘They love to roost in shrubberies and 
evergreens at this season. The food of this Finch is 
composed, according to season, of insects and larve, seeds, 
grain, and various berries. ‘The young seem to be reared 
exclusively on an animal diet. ‘The bird is very fond of 
the seeds of the sunflower. ‘This bird flies well, and is as 
much addicted to the trees as the hedges ; it also obtains 
much of its food on the ground. Several broods are 
reared in the year, the breeding season lasting from April 
to August. An evergreen of some kind or a dense hedge- 
row are the favourite sites for the nest, although many 
other spots are chosen, sometimes high up a tree, fifty or 
more feet from the ground. ‘The nest is made of moss, 
dry grass, roots, and scraps of wool, bound together, 
especially round the rim, with a few slender twigs, and 
lined with finer roots, hair, wool, and feathers. ‘The five 
or six eggs are white (sometimes with a tinge of blue or 
green), sparsely spotted and speckled with reddish brown 
and paler brown. The old birds become quiet and 
secretive during the nesting period, the hen sitting very 
closely. 
The adult male Greenfinch has the general colour of 
the upper parts yellowish green, suffused on the head, 
neck, throat, and breast with grey ; the wings are brown, 
the outer webs o the primaries yellow, and the secondaries 
margined and tipped with grey. The two central tail- 
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