THE ROBIN. 75 



destroyed. The Robins, if their nest be on the ground, 

 first scratch a hole as a foundation for future operations ; 

 then of moss, dry grass, and withered leaves, they form a 

 well-made nest, and line it with a large quantity of horse 

 or cow-hair, and but rarely indeed with any feathers. 

 Dead leaves are always found in the materials of the 

 Robin's nest, and the front of the nest is invariably one 

 mass of these remnants of autumn's mellow days : oak 

 leaves, as a rule, are the ones selected. Mimicry is the 

 Robin's general form of protective instinct as regards the 

 safety of its eggs and young, and he who finds the 

 Robin's nest, unassuming and simple, yet beautiful 

 in the extreme, will admire the protective arts of the 

 little builders, and, if he has not discovered it by acci- 

 dent, regard with pleasure the effectiveness of their de- 

 signs. The eggs of the Robin are four, five, six, and 

 even eight in number, and, as a rule, all prove fertile. 

 They vary considerably in colouring matter even in the 

 same nest. The most common variety is dirty-white in 

 ground colour, freckled, and spotted with pale reddish- 

 brown and gray markings, so closely as to almost con- 

 ceal the ground colour of the egg. Other specimens 

 are more sparsely coloured ; others of a purer ground 

 colour, with a zone of spots round the larger end ; while 

 yet again specimens are sometimes found pure white, 

 and entirelydevoid of markings. The Robin is a close 

 sitter, and, provided you exercise a little caution, you 

 may often have the pleasure of gently stroking the 

 sitting bird, without any alarm for the little creature for- 

 saking its charge. 



The Robin abandons its young very soon after they 

 leave the nest, and we often see the little things flutter- 

 ing about from bush to bush, but not able to fly for any 

 considerable distance. Helpless indeed they are, though 



