20 NATURAL HISTORY OF SELBORNE 



When you talked of keeping a reed-sparrow, and giving 

 it seeds, I could not help wondering ; because the reed- 

 sparrow which I mentioned to you (Passer arundinaceus 

 minor Rail) is a soft -billed bird; 1 and most probably 

 migrates hence before winter ; whereas the bird you kept 

 (Passer torquatus Raii) abides all the year, and is a thick- 

 billed bird. 2 I question whether the latter be much of a 

 songster ; but in this matter I want to be better in- 

 formed. The former has a variety of hurrying notes, 

 and sings all night. Some part of the song of the 

 former, I suspect, is attributed to the latter. We have 

 plenty of the soft-billed sort ; which Mr. Pennant had 

 entirely left out of his "British Zoology" till I reminded 

 him of his omission. See "British Zoology" last pub- 

 lished, p. i6. 3 



I have somewhat to advance on the different manners 

 in which different birds fly and walk ; but as this is a 

 subject that I have not enough considered, and is of such 

 a nature as not to be contained in a small space, I shall 

 say nothing further about it at present.* 



No doubt the reason why the sex of birds in their first 

 plumage is so difficult to be distinguished is, as you say, 

 " because they are not to pair and discharge their parental 

 functions till the ensuing spring." As colours seem to be 

 the chief external sexual distinction in many birds, these 

 colours do not take place till sexual attachments begin to 

 obtain. And the case is the same in quadrupeds ; among 

 whom, in their younger days, the sexes differ but little ; 

 but, as they advance to maturity, horns and shaggy manes, 

 beards and brawny necks, &c., &c., strongly discriminate 

 the male from the female. We may instance still farther 

 in our own species, where a beard and stronger features 



1 The Sedge Warbler (Acroccphalus phragtnitis}. See vol. i. pp. 104, 108. 

 [R. B. S.] 



2 The Black-headed or Reed Bunting (Emberiza schceniclus), called the Reed 

 41 Sparrow " to this day in many districts of England. [R. B. S.] 



$ See Letter XXV to Mr. Pennant. [G. W.] 

 4 See Letter XLII to Mr. Barrington. [G. W.] 



