294 THE WARBLERS. 



The food of the golden oriole during the spring and 

 summer consists of insects. In the autumn it feeds on 

 berries ; of cherries it is said to be particularly fond. 



Its nest is more ingeniously contrived than that of any 

 other Scandinavian bird. It is composed of fine grass, 

 small roots, moss, wool, &c., and in form resembles a purse, 

 or deep basket. It is placed in the fork of a bough of a 

 tree or bush, where it is secured with Bast (the rind of a 

 tree), or wool. The exterior of the nest, from being clad 

 with lichens and thin birch-bark, has a whitish appearance. 

 The female lays from four to five white eggs, which around 

 the thicker end are thinly sprinkled with dark-brown spots 

 and blotches. 



The Hedge Accentor (Jern-Sparf, Sw. ; Accentor modu- 

 laris, Cuv.) was scarce in my vicinity. I am not sure, 

 indeed, that it was found with us unless during migration. 

 For the most part this bird passes the summer months in 

 the more northern portion of Scandinavia, in wooded dis- 

 tricts. M. Malm met with it as high up even as Utsjoki, 

 that district of Lapland bordering on the Icy Sea. At 

 the fall of the year a portion winged their way to more 

 southern climes; but some remained during the winter in 

 the south of Sweden. 



The Redbreast (Rodhake- Sting are, or Red-throated War- 

 bler, Sw. ; Sylvia Rubecula, Lath.) was common with us 

 during the summer months ; as is also the case throughout 

 the greater part of Scandinavia. It is about the first of the 

 migratory birds to return to Sweden in the spring, and 

 amongst the last to leave it. Some few are said to remain 

 in the southern portion of the country during the whole of 

 the winter. 



