96 OUR IRISH SONG BIRDS. 



called compteur cTargent, in allusion to its song. It 

 seems not unlikely that this latter name has given its 

 origin to the strange word " collybita," often applied to 

 this bird, and apparently derived from the Greek word, 

 Ko\\vftio-TYis (kollubistes], a money-changer. If we 

 approach the Chiff-chaff closely, the song usually ceases, 

 and instead of it we hear only a low, chattering sound, 

 something like " cheep, cheep, cheep." 



The alarm-note, according to Meyer, is represented 

 by the word, " hoo-id " a note which can only be dis- 

 tinguished by a practised ear from that of the Willow 

 Warbler. 



The Chiff-chaff is by no means as plentiful in Ireland 

 as the Willow Warbler ; still it may be seen and heard 

 in probably every county from time to time. It often 

 frequents lofty trees, in which the latter bird is seldom 

 found ; and from their summit its tiny note, like a 

 chime of bells, may be heard sometimes at a distance of 

 half a mile. In the grounds surrounding Elm Park the 

 Willow Warbler may be heard every day and all day 

 from April to July ; but we usually hear the Chiff-chaff 

 only twice or thrice in the season, and generally just 

 before its departure in September. 



The food of this little bird consists entirely of insects, 

 and Rev. J. G. Wood says that it saves many a good 

 oak from destruction by devouring on its first arrival 

 the caterpillars of the green oak moth ; it also feeds on 

 aphides and flies, which it may be seen catching on the 

 wing. The Chiff-chaff has sometimes been called " the 

 Oven-Builder," from the shape of the nest which it 

 constructs. It is usually placed on the ground, but 

 sometimes in a low bush, or in the stump of a tree. Its 

 six eggs are white, with dark purple spots. 



