436 



BRITISH BIRDS' NESTS. 



however, both sexes are subject to variation in the 

 intensity of coloration. 



Situation and Locality. In whitethorn hedges, 

 sloe, gorse, and wild rose bushes. I have seen 

 specimens within a couple of feet of the ground on 

 some occasions, and on others between thirty and 

 forty feet high fixed to the side of a single bough 

 in an oak tree. It is found in nearly all suitable 



localities through- 

 out the British 

 Isles. 



Materials. - 

 Moss, lichens, wool, 

 spiders' webs, cun- 

 ningly felted to- 

 gether, and skil- 

 fully formed into 

 an oval - shaped 

 nest, which is 

 plentifully lined 

 with feathers and 

 securely fastened 

 to its surround- 

 ings. During the 

 spring of 1905 I one day found a nest which had 

 been shown me by a woodcutter torn out and 

 destroyed, and even amongst the fragments of the 

 structure I counted over three hundred feathers 

 which had belonged to seven different birds. Up- 

 wards of 2,000 have, however, been found in one nest. 

 Eggs. Seven to ten ; as many as twenty have 

 been found, but such a number was undoubtedly 

 the production of two hens. White or rosy-white 

 until blown, by reason of the yolk showing through 

 the delicate shell, with very small, faint red or 



LONG-TA.LED T,T AT NEST. 



