THE SPOTTED FLYCATCHER. 157 



plumage, when each brown feather is tipped 

 with a buff spot. As it grows older, these spots 

 gradually disappear. It is a wonderfully silent 

 bird, and even when the hen is sitting the male 

 does not, like the males of so many other 

 species, pour forth a song to enliven her. The 

 nest is usually placed on a beam in a shed, in a 

 hole in a wall, or on the branch of a wall-fruit 

 tree, partially supported by the wall ; not un- 

 frequently it may be discovered in a summer- 

 house. It is neatly composed of moss and fine 

 roots, and lined with grass, horsehair, and 

 feathers. The eggs, generally five in number, 

 are bluish white, spotted, chiefly at the large 

 end, with reddish brown. 



The late Mr. Wheelwright found the Spotted 

 Flycatcher inhabiting Lapland in summer, but 

 observed that it was. not nearly so common there 

 at that season as the Pied Flycatcher. In Cen- 

 tral and Southern Europe it is a summer resi- 

 dent, passing through Spain and Portugal, Italy, 

 Turkey, and the Ionian Islands twice a year 

 namely, in spring and autumn. Its course in 



