THE BARRED WARBLER. 79 



likely haunt in which to seek the species, whilst August and September are the 

 months most favourable for the search ; but it seems a thousand pities that these 

 rare birds should not be captured alive, and their habits in captivity studied in 

 detail. All that can be learnt from the stuffed skin of a Barred Warbler has 

 either long been known, or can be equally well studied from skins already in our 

 cabinets ; but really to know something of the nature and peculiarities of a bird, 

 it must be studied, not only flying freely in its native home, but in a good sized 

 aviary. L,ord I/ilford has set an example which might, with advantage to Ornith- 

 ological science, be well followed by many other Naturalists, and especially those 

 with means and leisure. 



When on migration the Barred Warbler reaches Heligoland in May and June, 

 but Gatke speaks of it as by far the rarest of those belonging to Germany which 

 are met with on that island; he says: "The bird is never seen before the middle 

 of May, and then only on warm, calm days, and in solitary instances ; nor can it 

 be by any means reckoned as a regular annual summer visitant." 



The adult male in breeding plumage is smoky grey above, the head, rump, 

 upper tail-coverts and tail-feathers greyer ; the wings browner ; the wing-coverts, 

 innermost secondaries, the feathers on the rump, the upper tail-coverts and the 

 outer tail-feathers are margined and tipped with white, and have blackish subter- 

 minal bar ; this is also sometimes the case with the forehead, lower back, and 

 scapulars ; the two central tail feathers are indistinctly barred ; under surface 

 greyish white, barred with grey, the breast, flanks, thighs, and under tail-coverts 

 browner, the flanks somewhat heavily barred ; axillaries and under wing-coverts 

 mottled with grey and white, bill dark brown, the lower mandible paler at the 

 base, feet greyish brown, iris pale yellow. The female is very like the male, but 

 slightly browner and with fewer transverse bars. In the autumn the colouring 

 becomes browner and the bars on the feathers more pronounced. Young 

 birds are browner than adults and are hardly barred at all excepting on the 

 under tail-coverts. 



Although not unlike the Whitethroat in its habits and even in its song, the 

 Barred Warbler is far more shy and skulking, rarely leaving the dense cover of 

 briar and brushwood ; though not frequently met with in forests, it haunts planta- 

 tions, copses, and tangled masses of thorn and blackberry, and from such retreats 

 its song may be heard : this, though harsh in some of its notes, is said to be 

 almost equal to that of the Garden Warbler and to include tones rich as those of 

 the Blackcap. 



The call-note is described as resembling the syllable chek ; and the alarm note 

 r-r-r-r-r, a harsh, warning cry. 



