70 



3000 ft. In the pine woods of S. Holland a few pairs also nest; and in 

 Germany it is local, and entirely absent from some districts, while in 

 Pomerania and E. Prussia it is replaced by the larger race. Among other 

 districts where it occurs more or less commonly may be mentioned the 

 Thiiringer Wald, the Harz, Silesia, etc., and it is on the whole more 

 numerous in the mountainous districts of S. Germany than in the northern 

 plains. In Austro-Hungary a good deal of confusion exists between the 

 two races, and at present their limits are not definitely known, but pro- 

 bably the smaller form is only found in the west, if indeed it is found 

 there at all. 



The Bullfinch which Reiser describes as breeding in the mountain 

 ranges of Bulgaria and Montenegro, is probably the large form, P. pyrrhula 

 pyrrhula. 

 Nest. In the British Isles the nest is often found in gardens, fir plantations, 



clumps of evergreens, thickets and thick hedges; very frequently in a box 

 tree {Buxus sempervirens) and also commonly in yew trees. On the Con- 

 tinent it is usually built in firs or other trees, in dense forest. Nests in 

 hedges are sometimes only 4 ft. from the ground, but the more usual 

 site is about 5 to 7 ft. high in thick evergreens, while in the forests of 

 the Continent the nest has been found at a height of 15 ft. The nest is 

 very characteristic, consisting of fine twigs and moss, with sometimes 

 a few lichens, neatly lined with very fine roots and hair, and rarely with 

 a few feathers or a little avooI. There is considerable variation in the 

 size of nests, some (probably those of young birds) being much smaller 

 and slighter than others. As the Bullfinch is a life-paired bird, the same 

 locality, though not the same spot, is often resorted to for several years 

 in succession. The hen sits very closely when incubating. 

 Eggs Usually 4 — 5, occasionally 6. In colour they are a clear blue with 



a tinge of green, marked chiefly at the large end with spots and an 

 occasional streak of dark purplish brown, sometimes black or almost black. 

 These markings tend to form a zone. The underlying markings consist 

 of spots and sometimes large blotches of violet grey. A rare variety has 

 red spots on a white ground, and sometimes pure white eggs are found 

 (R. H. Read) or white eggs with faint reddish brown frecklings. 

 Breeding In the south of England the first eggs are laid during the last week 



Season. Qf ^p^il or early in May, and a second brood in June. In the N. of Eng- 

 land the time is decidedly later, and most eggs are laid in the latter half 

 of May or the beginning of June, while second broods may occasionally 

 be found in July. Irish birds breed about the same time. Rey gives 

 May and July as the breeding season in Germany, and in the Alps it nests 

 in May or June according to the season, sometimes breeding a second time 

 in July and early August (Fatio). 



