44 SKETCHES OF EUROPEAN ORNITHOLOGY. 



ing it of dried grasses and wool, with a lining of hair." The eggs 

 are five or six, pinkish-white, " with spots of wood-brown disposed 

 in zones, chiefly at the large end." The female is at once distin- 

 guished by the absence of the grey hood and the black streak on the 

 face. The plate represents an adult male and a young male. Both 

 are good, the latter unexceptionable. 



Common RuflF, Machetes pugnax — Becasseau combattant, Fr. — 

 Gambetta scherzosa. It. — Streits Strandlaufer, G. We are pre- 

 sented with figures of the male in summer and winter attire, and 

 an adult female, all of the natural size and very good. It is much 

 less abundant in England than formerly, but is still common in the 

 marshy districts of France, Germany, and Holland. In summer it 

 extends northward as far as Lapland, Sweden, and Russia, where it 

 is ascertained to breed. It is a strictly migratory bird. The Ruff 

 is polygamous, and its pugnacity is well known. The flesh of the 

 Ruff is considered a great delicacy, and considerable numbers are 

 annually fattened for the table. The adult male in summer plu- 

 mage is at once distinguished by its superior size, by the beautiful 

 feathers on the neck, and by the general brightness of its tints. 

 The male in winter attire resembles the other sex, except that the 

 colour of the throat and breast is very much lighter in the former. 



Penduline Lannet, Mgitalus pendulinus — Mesange remiz, Fr. — 

 Beutel Jleise, G. A pair of these pretty little birds, with their 

 nest, are figured ; we do not particularly admire the plate. Inha- 

 bits the south of Europe, frequenting the margins of rivers and 

 inland lakes, especially where reeds, willows, &c.j are plentiful. 

 Its habits much resemble those of our Bearded Pinnock, CalamophL 

 Ills biannicHS. Feeds on seeds, aquatic insects, and small moUusca. 

 We believe the Pinnock likewise subsists on all the above kinds of 

 food, though Mr. Gould appears to think otherwise. The nest is 

 " constructed of the soft down of the willow or poplar, and this sub- 

 stance, which closely resembles cotton wool, is interwoven together 

 with admirable ingenuity, so as to form a flask-shaped nest, with a 

 lateral opening into the internal chamber. It is suspended at the 

 extremity of a drooping branch of a willow, or any similar tree, 

 overhanging the water." The eggs, five or six, are pure white, 

 marked with a few red blotches. The colours of the female are 

 more dingy than those of the male ; young birds want the black 

 mark on the face. 



An adult male, in the breeding plumage and natural size, of the 

 Roseate Tern, Sterna Dougalli — Tcrne Dougall, Fr. A very pretty 

 and well- executed figure in many respects. The delicate rose colour 



