PIE. 317 



These gatherings are probably the result of the migratory 

 tendency possessed by the young birds of the year, and it is 

 unquestionable that every autumn a large number arrive in 

 this country. In winter also Pies are apt to congregate 

 towards evening, and roost together in thick woods, sepa- 

 rating again however during the day. 



The Pie begins to breed early in spring, building in high 

 trees, or in hedge-rows*, and not unfrequently in low but 

 thick bushesf, returning to the same nest for several years in 

 succession, when the mass of materials accumulated will often 

 be enormous. The fabric is a masterpiece of ingenuity, 

 being wonderfully constructed for security against most 

 enemies. It is large and of an oval or spherical shape, 

 formed of stout sticks, turf and clay, piled together as a 

 foundation, the top of which is wrought into a deep, hollow 

 cup, plastered with earth on the inside, and neatly lined 

 with a bedding of fibrous roots and sometimes, it is said, 

 dry grass. The outside is further beset with smaller but 

 long sticks chiefly of the blackthorn, the sharp spines of 

 which project in every direction. This outwork is firmly 

 interwoven, and carried up above the body of the nest so as 

 to form a basket-like dome of somewhat looser texture over 

 the top. A single opening is left on the side just large 

 enough to give passage to the parent bird, who generally sits 

 with her head to the hole, ready to repel any intruder with 

 whom she may cope, or to quit the nest on serious alarm. 

 The eggs, from six to nine in number, are usually of a very 

 pale bluish-green, closely freckled with olive-brown over 

 some ash-coloured blotches, but sometimes of a light yel- 

 lowish-brown with olive markings ; they measure from 1'61 

 to 1-22 by from 1-01 to -89 in. 



When taken young the Pie is easily tamed, and will soon 

 learn to imitate the human voice, and to perform many enter- 

 taining tricks. If the conditions of its captivity are favour- 

 able it will, as noticed by Dr. Bree (Zool. p. 8632), even 



* It is commonly believed in parts of England, as M. de Selys Longcbamps 

 says it also is in Belgium, that the Pies which build in hedges are smaller than 

 those which breed in trees. 



f In countries where it is not molested it often builds under the eaves of 

 houses. 



