154 TUE SMALLER BRITISH BIRDS. 



with a lining of fine grass, hair, and feathers, and are either placed in 

 a hollow, or slightly raised above the surface of the ground. 



The beautiful Snow and Lapland Buntings belong to the genus 

 Plcctrophanes ; the first only visits the shores of Britain with regularity, 

 being met with chiefly in the north of Scotland during the winter; of 

 the other species only a few isolated specimens have been found in 

 England. 



The five remaining species form a separate group called Emberiza, 

 and differ from the members of the previous genus in having the 

 upper mandible narrower, the wings shorter and less pointed, and the 

 knob on the palate more angular and elevated. Of these the Yellow 

 and Black-headed Buntings are the commonest in Britain, the former 

 especially being one of the most familiar and attractive of the feathered 

 species to be met with in our country rambles. 



