THE TELL W B UNTTNG. 1 63 



this bird exhibits no animation, but sits motionless, and appears to 

 use but little exertion. The ordinary note, which is uttered at the 

 end of autumn and throughout the winter, is a rather harsh and low 

 chirp. 



Early in the spring the Yellow Buntings select their partners, and 

 commence building operations. They usually choose some well sheltered 

 spot amid bushes, or in a clump of grass or other herbage, and con- 

 struct a rather bulky nest of dry grass, fibrous roots, twigs, and moss, 

 lining it neatly with finer grass and hair. In this are deposited from 

 four to six eggs, of a pale purplish white colour, streaked and spotted 

 with dark reddish brown. The markings have been thought to bear 

 some resemblance to written characters; hence this bird has been some- 

 times called the 'Writing Lark/ In the first volume of the "Zoological 

 Journal," Mr. Blackwell records the curious fact that a female of this 

 species deposited her eggs on the bare ground, and sat upon them 

 until they were hatched. The male is an affectionate and attentive 

 husband, often taking the place of his mate upon the nest, and ex- 

 hibiting his pleasure in thus lightening her labours by singing cheerfully 

 the while. The young are seldom able to fly before the second week 

 in June, but usually leave the nest within a fortnight after the time 

 they are hatched, and roost at night with their parents. In favourable 

 seasons two or even three broods are reared. 



During the winter these birds are to be seen in large flocks, visiting 

 in company with other species the stack-yards and stubble-fields in 

 search of grain, seeds, and insects. Their flight is strong and rapid, 

 but easy and graceful; they alight in a sudden and abrupt manner 

 when anything attracts their attention on the trees or 'terra firma,' 

 jerking out all their tail feathers at the same moment. On the ground 

 they advance by short leaps, with the body in a horizontal position, 

 and the breast almost in contact with the surface. "When perched on 

 a tree, especially in windy weather, they crouch close to the twigs, 

 draw in their neck, and keep the tail declined/' 



This beautiful bird, which obtains its specific name from citrus, a 

 lemon or citron tree, rarely attracts the attention it merits in conse- 

 quence of its great abundance. "Few persons are fully aware," says 

 Neville Wood, "of the exquisite though simple colouring of the Yellow 

 Bunting, which, common though it be, is not, in my opinion, surpassed 

 in this particular by any rarer species that visits our island/' 



The adult male, which weighs about seven drachms, and is a little 

 over seven inches in length, has the head and lower portion of the 

 neck of a bright lemon yellow, and the breast and sides yellowish red, 

 with each feather darker in the centre. The upper part of the back 



