REDBREAST. 253 



The young birds after their first autumn moult resem- 

 ble adult females ; but the red of the breast is tinged with 

 orange, the legs dark brown. 



The Redbreast is subject to variation in the colouring 

 of the plumage. White and partly white varieties are 

 not uncommon. I remember, some years ago, having 

 seen one in which the part usually coloured red was a 

 light bluish grey, the back and wings bluish green. In 

 this state, as to colour, the bird had the appearance of a 

 Tit (Parus) ; but the generic characters, and the parti- 

 cular distribution of the colours, decided the species. 



