472 A PRACTICAL HANDBOOK OF BRITISH BIRDS. 



Juvenile. Like that of Nightingale but upper-parts less rufous ; 

 tail and wings darker and less rufous and spots at tips of innermost 

 secondaries and wing-coverts paler. 



First winter. Male and female. Like adults, except for pale 

 spots at tips of innermost secondaries and outer half of greater 

 coveits. The juvenile body -feathers, lesser, median and inner 

 half of greater wing-coverts are moulted July-Aug., but not remiges, 

 rectrices, primary -co verts nor outer half of greater wing -co verts. 

 Summer. Pale tips of innermost secondaries and outer greater 

 coverts are usually not all worn off. 



Measurements and structure. $ wing 8492 mm. (one 95), 

 tail 63-71, tarsus 25-28, bill from skull 16-17 (12 measured). ? 

 wing 83-90. Primaries : 1st minute and about half primary- 

 coverts, 3rd longest, 2nd and 4th 2-5 mm. shorter, 5th 7-10 shorter, 

 6th 9-14 shorter ; 3rd emarginated outer web. Secondaries nearly 

 as long as 10th primary, tips fairly square. Rest of structure as 

 Nightingale. 



Soft parts. Bill dark brown, base of lower mandible pale 

 brown ; legs and feet pale brown ; iris dark brown. 



CHARACTERS. No subspecies. Dark colour and different wing- 

 structure distinguish it from other Nightingales. 



FIELD-CHARACTERS. Appearance same as Common Nightingale's, 

 but at close quarters spotted breast and more olivaceous colour 

 can be recognized. Song more powerful than Nightingale's, and 

 the flute-like "piou" represented by marvellously pure, bell-like 

 notes. Although the song is often intermingled with a rasping 

 " dserr," it is altogether more solemn and more beautiful than 

 Nightingale's, and cannot be mistaken for that of latter. (E.H.) 



BREEDING -HABITS. Haunts marshy woodlands, nesting on stump 

 or among low bushes near ground, and well hidden. Nest. Built 

 with characteristic foundation of dead leaves, of bents, stalks, etc., 

 and lined with finer grasses. Eggs. Usually 4-5, similar in type 

 and range of colour to Nightingale. Average of 72 eggs, 21. 7 X 

 16.2 mm. Breeding-season. Varies according to latitude from 

 early May to June. Incubation. No reliable field observations, 

 but in confinement period 13 days, by hen only (Teschemaker). 

 Apparently single brooded. 



FOOD. Chiefly worms and larvae of insects, especially coleoptera, 

 and lepidoptera and pupae of hymenoptera (ants). Berries of elder, 

 etc., also eaten (Naumann). 



DISTRIBUTION. Scotland. One Fair Isle (Shetlands), May 15, 

 1911 (ut supra}. [One at Smeeth (Kent) Oct. 22, 1904 (M. J. Nicoll, 

 Bull. B.O.C., xv, p. 20) was considered an unlikely genuine migrant 

 owing to the late date (cf. Hartert, i.e., p. 47 ; Saunders, Brit. B., i, 

 p. 8). Another said to have been taken Norfolk, June 5, 1845, 



