198 A PRACTICAL HANDBOOK OF BRITISH BIRDS. 



DESCRIPTION (Plate 7). Adult male. Winter. Resembling that 

 of M . f. flava but with darker lores and ear-coverts and ill-defined 

 eye-stripe : in these particulars resembling M . f. thunbergi but 

 with white of chin extending on to throat more even than in 

 M. f. flava. Summer. Same differences as in winter, but more 

 marked, and crown slightly darker than in M . f. flava, but not so 

 dark as in M. f. thunbergi. 



Adult female. Winter and summer. Very similar to M. f. flava 

 and scarcely distinguishable but ear-coverts rather darker and 

 chin purer white. 



Nestling and juvenile. (Not examined.) 



First winter. Male and female. Not to be distinguished 

 from M . f. flava. 



Measurements and structure. Like M. f. flava but inclined 

 to be smaller. $ wing 76-84 mm., tail 68-72, tarsus 21-25, bill from 

 skull 13-14 (12 measured). 



BREEDING-HABITS. Nests in more open sites than Motacilla f. flava 

 and M . /. rayi, owing to lack of cover, but otherwise habits similar. 

 Eggs. 4 to 6, rarely 7 ; average size of 35, 18.5 X 14 mm. 

 Breeding-season. From latter part April in Spain. Possibly two 

 broods, as eggs taken in Algeria in June. 



FOOD. Insects. 



DISTRIBUTION. England. One Penzance (Cornwall (at supra). 

 [The 1842 Norfolk specimen is M. f. thunbergi, see Brit. B., rx, 

 p. 93.] 



DISTRIBUTION. Abroad. Spain, south France (Camargue), Sicily, 

 Italy, east to Dalmatia, Bosnia, Herzegovina, Montenegro and 

 north-west Africa (Algeria), wintering in northern tropical Africa. 



81. Motacilla flava feldegg Michah. THE BLACK-HEADED 

 WAGTAIL. 



MOTACILLA FELDEGG Michahelles, Isis, 1830, 'p. 812 (1830 Southern 

 Dalmatia).* 



Motacilla melanocephala Lichtenstein, Verz. Doubl. Zool. Mus. Berlin, 

 p. 36 (1823 Nubia). 



Motacilla feldeggi of Michahelles, Butter-field, Bull. B.O.C., xm, p. 69 ; 

 M. melanocephala Licht., Saunders, Brit. B., i, p. 10 M. /. melano- 

 cephala Licht., N. F. Ticehurst, i.e., i, p. 137 ; Handl. B.B., p. 38 (1912). 



DESCRIPTION (Plate 7). Adult male. Winter. Resembling that 

 of M. f. flava but feathers of fore-head and crown black fringed 

 green and greyish-brown, and ear-coverts black and greenish- 



* We are obliged to Mr. T. Iredale for pointing out the prior use of 

 the combination " Motacilla melanocephala " by Gmelin. The name to be 

 used is therefore " feldegg," but not feldeggi, as the author wrote purposely 

 " feldegg " and " neumayer " several times. E.H. 



