22 Canon H. B. Tristram — Ornitho1u(jical 



call of the Quail resounded from every field. But the crops, 

 chiefly of Indian corn and French beans, were too far ad- 

 vanced for us to walk through them ; and though the 

 Canarians are, of all people in the world, the most tolerant 

 o£ trespassers, I could not venture to try to walk up the 

 game, which, indeed, without a dog, would not have been a 

 very successful enterprise. 



A Red Kite {Milvus ictinus) obligingly passed over my 

 head and gave me the opportunity of securing a very fine 

 female specimen which had not yet bred. The Kite, though 

 pretty generally distributed, so that one could seldom be out 

 for a day without seeing one, is by no means abundant in 

 individuals, and seems to feed here exclusively on offal. It 

 is a migrant, and retires during the winter, while the Buzzard 

 remains. 



Up to this time, though I had frequently seen the Linnet 

 and the Goldfinch, I had not yet found the Canary bird, but 

 at length secured one of a pair sitting in a peach-tree over- 

 hanging the path. The Canary is certainly much scarcer in 

 Canaria than in Tenerife or Gomera. In fact it was not 

 easy to get more than one or two in a day^s ramble, while in 

 the other islands one might without trouble secure more in 

 a morning than I should care to skin in a day. 



In Canai'ia, though it descends lower than the Tintillon, 

 I never saw it, as I did in Tenerife, near the sea-level ; but 

 I was told that in winter it comes down in small flocks to 

 the coast. I often saw Canaries feeding along with Linnets. 

 In the other islands we found in May large flocks of the 

 national bird above the forests, among the pine trees, at a 

 height of 5000 feet. They appeared to be chiefly birds of 

 the year. Their song is identical with that of the domesti- 

 cated race, or perhaps finer. I listened to a singing-match 

 between a Canary and a Linnet in two neighbouring trees, 

 and the superior power and richness of the notes of the 

 former were indisputable. Its habits, as might be expected, 

 hardly differ from those of the Linnet, excepting that it 

 more affects trees and perches higher. The nest is neat 

 and Linnet-like, abundantly lined with goat's hair. A 



