330 BRITISH BIRDS. 



quently be seen hovering, in butterfly-like flight, in the air. Sometimes it 

 sits quietly on some decayed limb, ever and anon uttering its call-notes 

 and incessantly jerking its tail and half opening its wings, as though 

 anxious to sally into the air. Its food consists almost entirely of insects, 

 especially of flies and gnats, which it often takes from the leaves of the 

 forest-trees whilst hovering daintily above them. It is also said to feed 

 on various kinds of berries, such as raspberries, currants, elderberries, &c., 

 and also on worms. Its visits to the fruit-trees, however, are most likely 

 principally for the purpose of catching insects, and not exclusively to feed 

 upon the fruit. 



The song of the Pied Flycatcher is a very pleasing one, short and some- 

 what feeble, something like the Redstart's, yet uttered pretty frequently, 

 especially in the early part of its sojourn in our islands, during the pairing- 

 season. 



The Pied Flycatcher's nest is always placed in a covered site, which 

 varies but little in its situation. It is built in the holes of birch and 

 other trees, sometimes in a deserted Woodpecker's hole, or crevice of a 

 wall or rock, at various heights from the ground, sometimes but a few 

 feet, at others far up the trunks. In these holes a slight nest is formed of 

 dry grasses, dead leaves, moss, and feathers, sometimes a little wool from 

 the sheep on the neighbouring hills, or a few horse and cow's hairs. 



Few of our British eggs are more beautiful in colour than those of the 

 Pied Flycatcher. They are a delicate pale blue, sometimes almost ap- 

 proaching white, perfectly spotless, somewhat frail in texture, and slightly 

 smaller than those of the Hedge-Accentor. In number they vary from 

 five to eight, the latter number, however, being someAvhat exceptional ; and 

 but one brood is, as a rule, reared in the year. The eggs vary in length 

 from '8 to '65 inch, and in breadth from '58 to -52 inch. 



Dixon once found a beautiful nest of this bird near the moorlands a 

 few miles from Sheffield, his attention being attracted to the place by 

 seeing the bird hovering before the nesting-hole. It was built in a large 

 rotten stump of a birch, the wood of which crumbled away easily and 

 revealed the nest, which contained eight pale-blue eggs, almost ready for 

 hatching. Since this nest was disturbed, the bird has not, to his know- 

 ledge, bred there. 



The general colour of the upper parts and tail of the Pied Flycatcher is 

 black, duller and greyer on the rump ; wings brown, with the central 

 coverts white and the innermost secondaries broadly edged with white. 

 A small patch of white on the forehead at the base of the bill ; underparts 

 pure white. Beak black; irides dark brown; legs, toes, and claws black. 

 In the female the black is replaced by brown, and the whole plumage is 

 dingy. Males of the year resemble the adult female, but are slightly 

 darker. Young birds in nestling-plumage are spotted above with buff, 



