132 A PRACTICAL HANDBOOK OF BRITISH BIRDS. 



remiges and rectrices. Summer. — After moult becoming more 

 like adults but chin and throat apparently less dark and often 

 whitish. 



Measurements and structure. — ^ wing 68-74 mm., tail 53-59, 

 tarsus 17-18, bill from skull 9-10 (12 measured). $ wing 64-67. 

 Primaries : 1st minute and hidden, 3rd and 4th usually equal and 

 longest, 2nd and 5tli sometimes equal usually 1-2 mm. shorter, 

 6th 4-7 shorter ; 3rd to 6th emarginated outer webs. Other 

 structure as E. citrinella but palatal knob scarcely observable. 



Soft parts. — Bill blackish-brown, lower mandible pale brown ; 

 legs and feet pale brown ; iris dark brown. 



Characters and allied species. — No subspecies recognized. 

 Uniform chestnut lores and ear-coverts, browner rump, and brown 

 lesser wing-coverts distinguish it from E. schcenichis ; in juvenile 

 plumage its chestnut-buff lores and ear-coverts are best character, 

 and these, combined with heavy black streaks on breast and 

 brown, not chestnut, rump and lesser wing-coverts, distinguish 

 it from E. rustica at all ages. 



Field-characters. — A dull-looking little bird, distinctly smaller 

 than Reed-Bunting. With field-glasses, rufous sides of face should 

 always be looked for. In addition to its smaller (slimmer) appear- 

 ance, readily distinguished from Rustic -Bunting by its duller 

 under-parts, with fine black streaks (H. Lynes). 



Breeding-habits. — Breeds in depressions of ground in willow 

 swamps and forest clearings, also in dwarf willow scrub on tundra. 

 Nest. — ^Among dead leaves, moss, and grass, lined few reindeer 

 hairs and fine grasses. Eggs. — 4-5, rarely 6, very variable, ground- 

 colour, greenish, pinkish-grey or brownish, spotted, blotched and 

 scrawled dark brown, or reddish-brown, with violet-grey shell-marks. 

 Average of 33 eggs, 18.28 X 13.94 mm. Breeding-season. — Latter 

 part of June. Incubation. — Period and share of sexes unknown. 

 One brood. 



Food. — Seeds ; also insects in summer (coleoptera, etc.). 



Distribution. — British Isles. — ^About seven England, many 



Scotland, and one Ireland. England. — One Brighton (Sussex), 



Nov. 2, 1864 (Saunders, p. 219). One Teesmouth (Durham) 



Oct. 11, 1902. One near Rugby (Warwick) Oct., 1902. One 



Dover (Kent), Nov. 16, 1907. One, supposed, Southend (Essex), 



Nov., 1892. One Cley (Norfolk), Oct. 19, 1908. One Whitby 



(Yorks.), Oct. 6, 1913 (c/. Brit. B., i, pp. 249, 383, 385 ; ii, p. 238 ; 



VII, p. 196). Scotland. — Fair Isle (Shetlands) : observed in 



recent years (since 1905) almost regularly in small numbers in 



autumn (Sept. -Oct.) and three times in spring (April 14, 1907 ; 



May 12, 1908 ; May 18, 1909). Orkneys : Pentland Skerries, one 



Oct. 15, 1903, one Oct. 12, 1915, one Sule Skerry, Sept. 22, 1908, 



one Auskerr}^, Sept. 21, 1913. St. Kilda (0. Hebrides), two Sept. 15, 



