566 MOTACILLIDJl. 



actively and gracefully running just in front of the beast's 

 head or between its legs, catching the flies and other insects 

 that are disturbed by its progress as it feeds or attracted to 

 it when lying down. These are quickly seized by the birds 

 and sometimes every animal of a large herd or flock will be 

 escorted by from one to half-a-dozen of these little attend- 

 ants, ever on the watch for a passing insect, and at once 

 administering to the comfort of the larger being while 

 satisfying their own wants. 



The call of this bird is more shrill than that of the Pied 

 Wagtail, but less so than that of the Grey species, and con- 

 sists of two notes repeated in succession, the second of which, 

 in the musical scale, is a whole tone lower than the first. 

 The song of the cock is lively but short and not often uttered. 



The Yellow Wagtail is pretty numerous during summer 

 and, with the exception of Cornwall and Devon, is found in 

 suitable places throughout England, as well as in Wales and 

 Scotland so far as Forfarshire on the east and Dumbarton- 

 shire on the west. Further north it becomes scarcer though 

 it breeds in the counties of Inverness and Aberdeen. It has 

 been also seen in Sutherland and has several times occurred 

 in Orkney. In Ireland it is generally a rare species, and 

 curiously enough except about Lough Neagh, does not seem 

 to be more than a stray visitor, for it is doubtful whether it 

 breeds elsewhere in the country. In the south, middle and 

 west of the island, indeed, there is no record of its appear- 

 ance. After the breeding- season is over this bird collects in 

 flocks often of considerable size and then, on its passage 

 southward, frequently shews itself in places not at other 

 times visited by. it. These flocks do not seem to drift east- 

 ward along the south coast of England as is the rule with 

 the main body of our departing emigrants, but strike their 

 outward course at once, leaving this country from the shores 

 of Cornwall and Devon, as observed by Montagu seventy 

 years ago, equally with those of Sussex or Kent ; and Mr. 

 Blyth mentions having noticed a small flock, early one morn- 

 ing in September, upon the sands in Jersey, which had ap- 

 parently not long alighted from across the Channel, and had 



