THE HEDGE ACCENTOR. 



THE Hedge Sparrow, or Hedge Accentor, for he is not 

 a Sparrow at all, though certainly he bears a distant resem- 

 blance to one, is another little soft-billed chorister who 

 permanently resides in Britain. He shares the hedge- 

 rows with the Robin, and frequents the tangled brakes 

 and thickets with the Wren. We see him hopping 

 amongst the heaps of wood in the farmyard, uttering his 

 low and plaintive call notes, and amongst the ever- 

 greens in the shubbery he is often seen, especially at 

 nightfall. A quiet and unobtrusive little creature he is, 

 and his low and plaintive music, resembling the song of 

 the Wren, only nothing near so loud, is heard at all times 

 of the year, provided he can obtain sufficient shelter from 

 the elements. 



The Hedge Accentor appears to love retirement, even 



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