l(i(i xonrii amf:ki('an bikds. 



Xorth American fauna as an (H'oasional visitant of ( Jicenland, wliere in two 

 instances .single sjjecinims have l>een procurcil. It is found in all ]»ortions 



of the Eui()i)ean Continent, from the 

 islands of the Mediterranean as far north 

 as the .Vrctic rei,'ions. It appears in Swe- 

 den in Aj)ril, and leaves there in Octoher. 

 Mr. (lould states also that it is found ill 

 the northern portions of Africa, and in 

 the liijL,dilands of India. It also occui-s, 

 though less fre(iuently, in England, where 

 it is replaced by a local race, or an allied 

 S])ecies, Mntinilhi //</>•/•</// of (lould. The 

 M(>ffiri//a aiha is said l>y Temminck tt> in- 

 hahit meadows in the vicinity of streams 

 of water, villages, and old houses. Its food is chietly insects in various stages 

 and of difl'erent kinds. 



I^ builds its nest on the ground anion*'; the grass of the meadow, in fissures 

 ill rocks or decayed buildings, among the roots of trees, on the banks of 

 streams, in ))iles of wood and fagots, or under the arch of a bridge. The 

 nests are somewhat coarsely constructed of interwoven dry l>ent stems of 

 plants and reeds, with a finer lining of the same. The eggs, six in number, 

 are of a bluish-white ground thickly sprinkled with tine clottings, which are 

 most usually of a bhickish- brown color, sometimes ashy-gray or reddish- 

 brown. 



The Pied Wagtail, J/. ;/<'?vr///, Degland and (Jerbe regard as a race, and 

 not a species. It has a limited habitat, ccjiitiiu I to Norway, Sweden, and 

 the IiHtish Islands, in the latter of which it is a resident throughout the 

 year. Besides their ditt'erence in jdumage, Mr. Varrell has noticed certain 

 ilitferences also of habit. The olhn is said not to be so paitial to water as 

 the pied species, and though often found near ploughed land, does not, like 

 its kindred s])ecies, follow the plough in search of insects. Mr. Hewitson also 

 states tliat it has a hoarser voice. 



Like all the birds of this family, the Wagtail is much admired for the ele- 

 gance of its form, its activity, and the airy lightness of its motions. It seems 

 ever on the move, runs with great ra])iditv a <juick succession of stei)S in 

 pursuit of its food, and goes from jdace to place in short undulating Hights. 

 It has a cheeiful chir]>ing iK>te which it uttei's while on the wing. When it 

 alights, it gives a graceful fanning movement with its tail, fioiu which it 

 derives its name. 



The Pie<l Wagtail, whose hal>its have been mo.e closelv observed by Eng- 

 lish naturalists, has frecjuently been seen to wade into the water in search of 

 aquatic insects, and probably also of small fish, as in confinement they have 

 been known to catch and feed on minnows in a fountain in the centre of their 

 aviary. It is ])robable that the habits of the White Wagtail are not dissimilar. 



