11 



with hair, and is generally placed near the ground 

 on a tuft of grass or rushes, by the stump of a 

 thorn bush, at the water's edge. Its eggs, four or 

 five in number, are of a dirty bluish white, with 

 many dark coloured spots and veins. 



BUNTING, GIRL. 



EMBERIZA CIRLUS, Lin. 



The Girl Bunting appears to be generally distri- 

 buted throughout the milder parts of England and 

 the Isle of Wight, but it is rarely met with in the 

 northern counties. It is also found plentifully in 

 the milder parts of France, Italy, and on the 

 shores of the Mediterranean. Its habits and 

 manners very much resemble those of the Yellow 

 Hammer, with which it occasionally associates 

 during winter. It prefers perching on high trees 

 rather than on hedges, and builds its nest higher 

 from the ground than the Yellow Hammer. The 

 nest is formed of a mixture of dried stalks of grass, 

 fibres of roots, and moss, and is lined with hair. 

 The eggs, four or five in number, and rather 

 smaller than those of the Yellow Hammer, are of 

 a greyish white colour, with waving brown lines, 

 and not unfrequently with spots of a chocolate hue. 



