C U R R U C A. 



217 



devourers of fruit, which they prefer to insect food ; 

 insomuch that, in confinement, when they first begin 

 to get a little tame, they will frequently descend from 

 their perch to eat fruit from the hand, when a buz- 

 zing fly has no attraction for them. In some of the 

 species, as the white-throat and babillard, the reverse 

 is the case, as, though extremely fond of fruit, these 

 will sooner come down to a fly. The garden warbler 

 is, perhaps, a greater devourer of caterpillars than any 

 of the others, and in confinement will eat seven or 

 eight in succession, of the caterpillars of the large 

 white cabbage butterfly (Pontia brassier), which the 

 others will not even touch. Its most favourite fruit 

 seems to be the Kentish cherry. 



Allied to this bird and the blackcap (C. atricapilla), 

 there are several continental species, most of which 

 have the outer tail feathers white. One of these, the 

 C. sarda, chiefly inhabiting Italy and Spain, is said to 

 be a charming songster. Another, the C. mclanoce- 

 phala, has very little melody to boast of. The C. 

 Ruppellli is a beautiful species, the male of which has 

 the head and throat black, divided by a white line ; 

 this chiefly inhabits Barbary, and occurs, but only as 

 a straggler, in the south of Europe. Further south 

 we have the C. Heinekia, which, with the common C. 

 atricapilla, is resident throughout the year in Madeira, 

 and is said to be a fine songster. The C. nisoria is a 

 European species, remarkable for its curiously spotted 

 plumage ; and the C. orpkea, an inhabitant of the 

 south of France, is a very pleasing songster, resem- 

 bling in its habits the common whitethroat ; this bird 

 also has the crown of the head black, and is remark- 

 able for generally nesting in society. The two last- 

 mentioned species are of larger size than the rest. 

 ' AH account of the babillard or lesser whitethroat 

 (C. garrula) has been given in its alphabetical situation 

 (see BABILLARD) ; closely allied to it are the C. pas- 

 senna and C. Icucopigon, both European birds. These 

 three are of smaller size, and more restlessly active 

 than the others. Their habits are intermediate be- 

 tween those of the blackcap and whitethroat. The 

 last-mentioned bird (C. cinerea) is exceedingly com- 

 mon throughout the British islands, arriving in the 

 southern counties about the middle of April, and 

 frequenting hedgerows and commons that are covered 

 with furze or brushwood. It is more a bush bird 

 than any ',i the others, and frequently rises singing a 

 little aw,iy into the air, a habit which is peculiar to 

 it and perhaps the spectacle whitethroat (C. compi- 

 cillat t), a smaller but very nearly allied Italian species. 

 Th se too have the bill shaped somewhat differently 

 from the typical or blackcap form, approaching more 

 a a miniature of that of the blackbird ; in this, and in 

 the habit of singing upon the wing, approaching to 

 the Dartford warbler or furze wren, a species we shall 

 presently describe, and which belongs to a separate 

 subgenus. The whitethroat is an extremely lively 

 :iiid active little bird, almost perpetually singing, and 

 ever erecting the feathers upon the throat and crown 

 of the head, together with the tail, which gives it a 

 characteristic appearance. The adult male has the 

 irides yellow, the crown and region of the eyes dark 

 grey ; the whole upper parts reddish brown, tinged 

 with grey ; and the wing coverts and tertiaries 

 broadly margined with mahogany. The throat is 

 white, and the breast faintly tinged with rose colour, 

 the latter hue being wanting in the female, which all 

 over inclines more to reddish brown ; tail rather long, 

 the exterior feather being a little shorter than the 



rest, and having its outer web and tip white. All the 

 birds of this genus may be readily known, as soon as 

 hatched, from the other tribes of warblers, by their 

 having the inside of the mouth and gape invariably 

 red ; they leave the nest before they are half fledged, 

 and skulk about the bushes, being only for a short 

 time fed by the parents, who very soon commence 

 again the work of nidification, and commonly rear 

 three broods in a summer. The whitethroat, like 

 the rest of the genus, frequents gardens and orchards 

 in the fruit season, being a great devourer of cherries, 

 currants, and the other smaller fruits. It appears to 

 be a very long-lived bird ; for Mr. Sweet kept one 

 in confinement for fifteen or sixteen years, at the end 

 of which time it is described to be as active and lively 

 as at first, to sing as merrily, and to show no sign of 

 old age. They are very tame and familiar, and rather 

 a hardy bird in confinement, and very amusing from 

 their liveliness, singing with great spirit and energy 

 against any other bird ; but, like the rest of the 

 genus, they are very subject to a partial loss of feather 

 during the winter. This species is exceedingly 

 abundant upon open commons and furze-brakes, 

 where its habits closely resemble those of the 



FURZE WHEN or DARTFORD WARBLER, as it is 

 generally but not very appropriately called (C. meli- 

 gophilus provincialis). This species was separated 

 from the others by Dr. Leach ; it is of small size, 

 with a bill like that of the whitethroat, but longer in 

 proportion ; the tarsi also are rather longer than in 

 the typical Currucae, the tail is much elongated, and 

 the wings are short and rounded ; in all which 

 respects it approximates to the genus Malurm, an 

 African group of warblers ; it does not, however, 

 construct a domed nest like those birds, but in its 

 nidification and eggs closely resembles the whitethroat 

 and other currucae. 



This curious little bird was first discovered in 

 England, near Dartford, in Kent, whence it has been 

 usually denominated the Dartford warbler. It is rare 

 however in that neighbourhood, although generally 

 speaking, wherever it is found, it occurs in abundance. 

 It is plentiful enough upon some of the commons in 

 the southern counties, inhabiting only the very thick- 

 est furzes, where its habits are so very shy and hiding 

 that a person might traverse for months various situa- 

 tions where it literally abounds, without being once 

 aware of its presence. It has consequently been 

 usually considered a very rare bird, though it certainly 

 is an extremely local one. Perhaps it is no where 

 more abundant than in the adjoining districts of 

 Surrey and Sussex. 



This bird is a little larger than the common wren, 

 but much longer including the tail, its total length 

 being about five inches and a half, of which the tail 

 measures almost half. Its weight is about two drachms 

 and a half. The eyelids are yellow, inclining to 

 orange ; irides reddish yellow, whence in Sussex they 

 are provincially called " Red-eyes." The bill almost 

 black ; base of the upper mandible whitish. The 

 whole upper parts dusky brown ; cheeks dark asii 

 colour ; two outer tail feathers tipped, and the outer 

 one also edged with white. The throat, neck, and 

 breast, dark cochineal red, inclining to purplish red ; 

 in the young of the year, the feathers of these parts 

 have each a fine streak of white. Legs and toes yel- 

 lowish brown. This bird, when flying, has a very 

 dark appearance, seeming to be almost black. It 

 differs from the other species in being resident in this 



