77 



REED WARBLER. 



NIGHT WARBLER. REED WREN. 



PLATE CXVII. 



Sylvia arundinacea, PENNANT. BEWICK. 



MotaciUa arundinacea, MONTAGU. 



Cwrruca arundinacea, FLEMING. 



Salicaria arundinacea, SELBT. GOULD. 



Passer arundinacea minor, RAY. 



THE nest is a very artistical piece of work, and is generally placed 

 between three, four, or five stems of the common reed that grow near 

 to one another, at a height commonly of about three feet above the 

 water, but one has been known as much as nine feet from the ground. 

 To these the self-taught architect fastens the cordage that supports her 

 tent, twining and interlacing it, that is, part of the materials of which 

 it is composed, round and round them at intervals, until the whole is 

 firmly fixed, not so firmly, however, but that the reeds may be easily 

 slipped out without injuring the structure. It is formed of dried grass, 

 long stalks, dry leaves, lichens, and wool, as also at times some moss, 

 and is lined with the blossom of the reed. It generally consists of two 

 parts, a loose foundation of the first-named materials, and the actual 

 nest, which is composed almost exclusively of the last-named. This 

 upper part can sometimes be detached from the lower, as if from a 

 socket, the whole being narrow and deep to secure the eggs when the 

 reeds are so swayed down, that the frail fabric, the bird all the while 

 sitting in it, is often brought close to the very water's edge. The depth 

 outside is from about three to five inches, and the inside about three, 

 by about three in width at the top and two at the bottom. The nest, 

 however, is not invariably placed among reeds; it is at times found in 

 a blackthorn, whitethorn, willow, or among the clustering branches of 



