CONSPICUOUS COLOUR 31 



furze bushes. Stonechats have been observed 

 for many hours at a stretch and from all 

 angles, but only on very rare occasions are 

 they difficult to see, as when they have dropped 

 down for a moment on to broken ground after 

 some insect food. They never depart far from 

 their undergrowth of furze or briar, so have 

 constantly at hand a secure refuge in case of 

 attack, and thus do not require protective 

 coloration. The usual background of this 

 bird is the sky and dark bushes, not broken 

 ground. 



Consider the Rook (C. Frugilegus). In the 

 early morning the flock leave the woods, to 

 spend the whole day in the open country, 

 where they are a mark for miles around, 

 especially on a day of sun, for then the flashes 

 of light from their glossy plumages will reveal 

 their presence three or four miles away. In 

 a tree the bird is equally visible as a dark 

 mass against the sky. When it is possible 

 to look down on a colony of their nests, the 

 sitting birds stand out blue-black in marked 

 contrast to the broken brown of the nests. 

 The Eook is a social bird : there is safety in 

 numbers : it will be an advantage to a single 

 lost bird to be able to see the flock from 

 afar. 



