2 BIRD GALLERY. 



from eight to twenty feet from the ground on a branch or in a, high 

 bush. The nest is open at the top and is constructed of short twigs, with 

 a lining of fine roots and grass. The eggs, from four to seven in 

 number, are greenish-grey, speckled with olive-brown. 



Norfolk : nest with eggs, May j young birds, June. 



Presented by Lord Walsingham, F.R.S. 



No. 3. NUTCRACKER. (Nucifraga caryocatactes.) 



A native of the pine- clad regions of Europe and Siberia, and a very 

 irregular autumn visitor to Great Britain, about twenty occurrences 

 having been recorded. Large flocks are sometimes formed in the 

 autumn, when considerable migrations take place in search of food, 

 and stragglers occasionally reach our shores. The nest, which in the 

 present instance was placed in the fork of a spruce-fir tree about fifteen 

 feet from the ground, is not roofed over, but half-domed nests are occa- 

 sionally found. The eggs vary from two to five in number, and are pale 

 bluish-green spotted with ash-brown. 



Hungary, April. 



Presented by C. G. Danford, Esq. 



No. 4. ROOK. (Trypanocorax frugilegus.) 



A common resident and generally distributed over the wooded and 

 cultivated districts of the British Islands. Gregarious in its habits, 

 this bird breeds in large companies, resorting early in spring to the 

 same " rookery " year after year. The nests are generally placed on 

 the tops of tall trees in the neighbourhood of houses and are constructed 

 of sticks and twigs, lined with rootlets, wool, etc. From four to six eggs 

 are laid, and resemble those of the Hooded and Carrion Crows. The 

 food consists chiefly of insects and their larvae ; but in dry seasons, 

 when these are scarce, the nests of other birds are systematically robbed 

 of their eggs. 



Bedfordshire : nest with eggs, 18th of April • young birds, 13th of May. 



Presented by Admiral Mark Pechell. 



9 



No. 5. CARRION-CROW. (Corvus corone.) 



Distributed throughout England, but local and rare in the north 

 and west of Scotland and in Ireland, where the Hooded Crow takes 

 its place. The two species not infrequently interbreed. The nest, 

 composed of sticks and warmly lined with wool, is generally placed 

 on a tree or ledge of rock commanding a wide outlook. The eggs 

 closely resemble those of the Rook and Hooded Crow, and are lour 



