a little curtsy, and repeating its monotonous note. It is not at all a shy bird, 

 and will go along a wall just in front of you for a long distance, dipping 

 behind the wall and re-appearing again on the top a little way off, making a 

 ddtour at last, and flying back to its favourite perch, which is usually not far from 

 the nest. Though it does not as a rule perch on bushes or trees, it may often 

 be seen on the top of some tuft of heather, balancing itself by graceful motions 

 of the tail. The song of the Wheatear is a short but very sweet little 

 performance, and is generally heard soon after its arrival at its breeding- 

 haunts. It is often uttered as the bird flutters in the air above its perch, 

 and sometimes when sitting on the top of some wall or stone. 



The food of the Wheatear is chiefly composed of insects, snails, worms, 

 grubs, and beetles, and, in common with nearly all insectivorous birds, it 

 subsists largely on small ground-berries during the fruit season. It may 

 often be seen perched like a fly-catcher on some prominent stone or fence 

 post, taking short flights after the passing insects, returning again to its old 

 perch. 



The nest of the Wheatear is an extremely difficult one to find, from the 

 nature of the site chosen. In some hole under a loose boulder or crevice in a 

 wall, under some loose sod, or in a rabbit-hole, or among the loose stones of 

 some cairn, are situations in which the nest is often placed. I have also 

 often seen it in the peat-stacks beside shepherds' cottages. The nest may be 

 any distance from the mouth of the hole, from a few inches to five or six feet. 

 It is a rather loosely built, flimsy structure of dry grass, small roots, and 

 moss, lined with fine grass and straw, and sometimes with feathers. When 

 the nest is in a rabbit-hole there is usually a good deal of rabbit's fur used 

 in the lining of the nest, and in some localities sheep's wool takes the place 

 of the other materials. 



The eggs laid vary in number from four to seven, though six is the 

 usual clutch found. They are pale greenish blue in colour, generally quite 

 spotless, though some specimens have very faint purple spots on the large 

 end of the egg. They are long shaped, and vary from "95 to '80 inch in 

 length, and from "65 to "60 inch in breadth. 



The young birds are carefully looked after by their parents for some 

 time after leaving the nest, and great is the anxiety of the old birds if the 

 intruders venture too near. They will fly round and round his head with 

 their curious jerky flight, uttering their plaintive notes incessantly, while 

 the young ones will crouch among the heather, or hide amongst the stones 

 beside the little stream. 



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