WARBLERS 35 
Eggs. Usually 5-6. Thickly speckled, or mottled ochreous 
or yellowish-brown on a paler ground. Not unlike 
the yellow-wagtail’s. Black hair streaks common. 
There are rare white and pink varieties. Av. 
length *70x‘52in. Laying begins in May-June. 
One brood usual. 
64. Grasshopper- warbler ([Locustella nevia 
nevia (Boddaert)]. Summer visitor to suitable 
localities—moorland, commons, marsh. 
Bird. Length oF in. Distinguished by the 
slight barring on the tail. It may further be 
distinguished from other British species by the 
curious “reeling ” note not unlike the continuous 
chirping of the grasshopper, whence its name. Fig. 37. 
The upper-parts are reddish-brown with black- 
brown markings, more or less in the form of longitudinal lines. 
Faint eye-stripe. Under-parts pale brownish with a few darker 
streaks on the breast. 
Nest. Place: heather, low down in bushes, undergrowth, 
and tangled herbage. Material: coarse grass, leaves, moss, 
&c., lined with finer grass. 
Higgs. Usually 6. Thickly speckled with fine red-brown 
spots, “ which occasionally form a zone, and in rare instances 
are replaced by bold blotches on a creamy-white ground” 
(Jourdain). Av. size, ‘69x ‘53 in. Laying begins in May. 
Usually one brood, 
(11) Family : Accentoride—Accentors 
65. Dunnock or Hedge-sparrow [Accentor modularis occi- 
dentalis Hartert; also described as Prunella modularis 
occidentalis (Hartert)|. Resident throughout our Isles. The 
Continental and lighter-coloured form PA. m. modularis| is a 
fairly numerous winter visitor to our east coasts. 
Bird. Length 54 in. Distinguished by the slate-grey head, 
neck,andforebreaststreakedwith brown. The male has the back 
streaked with brown onarufous tinge. Below the slate-grey the 
breast is dull greyish-white. Flanks palebrownstreaked amber- 
brown. Wings, quills, and tail dusky brown with paler brown 
margins. Beak comparatively slender and entirely different 
from the thick beak of the house-sparrow. Female duller. 
Nest. Place: usually in bushes, hedges, creepers, banks. 
Material: usually twigs, moss, grass, lined with hair, wool, 
moss, &c. 
Higgs. Usually 4-5. Unspotted blue. Rarely white. Av. 
size,*78 x58 in. Laying begins in’March-April. Broods 2-3. 
