THE BLUE-HEADED WAGTAH.. 195 



Soft parts. — Bill greyish-black, paler at base of lower mandible ; 

 legs and feet black ; iris black-brown. 



Characters and allied forms.* — Differences of 31. f. rayi are 

 given above under description of each plumage. For differences 

 of M. f. beema, thunhergi, cinereocapilla, and feldegg see under 

 those forms. Adult male of C. f. dombrowskii (Dobrogea, Wal- 

 lachia), has dark lores and ear-coverts, scarcely any white on 

 chin, darker crown but not so dark as in C. f. thunhergi, M. f. 

 campestris (south Russia to Transcaspia) is like M. f. rayi, but 

 adult male in summer has fore-head and fore-part of crown as 

 yellow as throat, 31. f. melanogriseus (Turkestan) is like 31. f. feldegg, 

 but adult male has white chin and white Ime from lower mandibles 

 under ear-coverts, M. f. leucocephala (Dsungaria, southern Altai) 

 adult male has white fore-head, crown, ear-coverts, lores and 

 chin, M. f. taivanus (Baikal, Amur to Kurile) adult male has dark 

 green crown, yellow eye-stripe and blackish lores and ear-coverts, 

 M. f. pygmcea (Egjq^t) is small and dark and has white chin, other 

 forms breed in north-eastern Siberia, Kamtschatka and Alaska. 



Breeding-habits. — Nests in thick vegetation in low-lying meadows 

 and cultivated ground. Nest. — Generally well concealed. Built 

 of bents and roots, sometimes moss in foundation, with thick 

 lining of hair. Eggs. — 5-6, sometimes 7, so finely speckled with 

 ochreous as to be almost uniform, but sometimes with distinct 

 mottling, and generally a dark hair-streak. Average of 100 eggs, 

 18.7 X 13.9 mm. Breeding-season. — From end May or early 

 June onward to July, but probably single brooded, as a rule. 

 Incubation. — Period not exactly known ; chiefly at any rate 

 by hen. 



Food. — Almost entirely insects (coleoptera and larvse, diptera, 

 orthoptera, larvse of lepidoptera, rhynchota, etc.). Saxby records 

 small worms, larvse, aquatic insects and small univalves, but 

 these are probably exceptional and diptera constitute bulk of food. 



Distribution. — England. — Summer-resident in small numbers 

 south-east Sussex and south-west Kent, arriving end April and 

 departing August. Has bred several times Durham and Wilts., 

 and possibly north Devon, Norfolk, Suffolk, north Kent, and Essex. 

 Elsewhere often recorded as a straggler, but chiefly in south. 

 Wales. — Two Merioneth, several C*arnarvon, and has occurred, and 

 possibly bred, Brecon. Scotland. — Has occurred at Edinburgh, in 

 Haddington, Lanark, Dumfries, Isle of May, Shetlands, and Fair 

 Isle. Possibly nested Aberdeen. 



* Varieties with very deep yellow (almost orange) under-parts are 

 occasionally met with in various subspecies, but no such specimen of 

 M. f. rayi has been examined. 



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