Il8 OUR IRISH SONG BIRDS. 



graceful of all Irish birds ; and it is one of the few 

 birds which are more plentiful in our country than in 

 England. 



Its call-note is a sharp "zis-zi," but it has, in addition, 

 a short, sweet, song, which has been compared to that 

 of the Swallow. 



It is a well-known bird all about Dublin, where it is 

 usually called the "Yellow Wagtail," a name which 

 properly belongs to a much rarer, though not so beauti- 

 ful, bird the Yellow, or Ray's, Wagtail ^f. Rail 

 which Mr. Ussher has found breeding on the shores of 

 Lough Neagh, and which, under the name of the 

 " Golden Wagtail," has been observed in Wexford and 

 elsewhere in Ireland from time to time. 



The nest is on the ground, or in a hole in the wall, or 

 occasionally in ivy. The eggs, five or six in number, 

 are of various colours, sometimes grey, and sometimes 

 buff, with brown or olive spots. 



ROCK PIPIT. 



Anthus obscurus ; Pipit obscur ; Strandpieper. 

 Rock Lark ; Sea Lark ; Dusky Lark ; Shore Pipit. 



Beak, legs, and claws, brown ; head, back, neck, and 

 wings, olive-brown ; whitish streak over the eye ; throat 

 and breast, yellowish, spotted with brown ; hind-claw 

 longer than the toe, and much curved. Length, about 

 six inches and three-quarters. Can be distinguished from 

 the Meadow Pipit by its larger size, darker plumage, 

 and stronger flight. 



The Rock Pipit is to be found generally along our 



