COMMON CROSSBILL. 15 



from Penshurst, where these birds were recently so nume- 

 rous that nine were killed at one shot. The Rev. William 

 Browne, of Cheam, sent me five specimens from Devizes 

 soon after Christmas. I have had the use of a dozen in 

 various states of plumage from Mr. Joseph Clarke, of 

 Saffron Walden, and as many from Mr. Henry Doubleday, 

 of Epping, in which locality these birds have been unusu- 

 ally numerous. 



The upper figure of the group at the head of this sub- 

 ject, as before observed, represents a young bird ; the middle 

 figure is from an old male ; the lower figure is from an adult 

 female. 



I obtained, by the kindness of Mr. John Leadbeater, of 

 Brewer Street, an opportunity of examining a young Cross- 

 bill, which was undoubtedly bred in this country during 

 the spring of the year 1839, and confirmed in various 

 points that which has been here detailed. This young bird 

 was brought from Hampshire at the latter end of March, 

 and was obtained within a few miles of Winchester. Its 

 whole length was only five inches ; the feathers of the wings 

 and tail not yet completed ; the former measuring but three 

 inches from the carpal joint to the end, and the tail-feathers 

 only extending five-eighths of an inch beyond the ends of 

 the upper tail-coverts. This bird cannot have flown far 

 from the nest in which it was reared, and was probably 

 hatched about the beginning of March. In the colours of 

 its plumage it very closely resembled those observed on 

 young birds of the year when obtained in June, as pre- 

 viously described, namely, the head, neck, upper part of 

 the back, the rump, and all the under surface of the body, 

 greyish white, streaked longitudinally with dusky brown ; 

 the feathers of the wings and tail hair-brown, with narrow 

 edges of pale brown ; the beak, though rather long, had 

 both its mandibles perfectly straight, the lower one just 



