THE NIGHTINGALE. 



153 



their contents at the little animal's command. 

 The black-cap and the wren, therefore, are as 

 respectable for their voices as they might be 

 deemed inconsiderable for their size. 1 



1 The Bl(ick-cap is somewhat above five inches in 

 length. It visits us about, the middle of April, and 

 retires in September; it frequents gardens, and builds 

 its nest near the ground. The female lays five eggs, of 

 a pale reddish brown, sprinkled with spots of a darker 

 colour. During the time of incubation the male attends 

 the female, and sits by turns ; he likewise procures her 

 food, such as flies, worms, and insects. The black-cap 

 sings sweetly, and so like the nightingale, that in Nor- 

 folk it is called the mock nightingale. Black-caps feed 

 chiefly on flies and insects, and not unfrequently on ivy 

 and other berries. 



The If run is found throughout Europe. Its nest is 



rnriously constructed, being composed chiefly of moss, 

 and lined with feathers ; and in shape almost oval, with 

 only one small entrance. This is generally found in 

 some corner of an out-house, stack of wood, or hole in a 

 wall, near our habitations ; but when the wren builds in 

 the woods, it is often in a bush near the ground, on the 

 stump of a tree, or even with the ground. The female 

 lays from ten to eighteen eggs. 



The Golden- Crested Wren is said to be the smallest 

 bird found in this kingdom, not weighing more than 

 three drachms. It has an exceedingly beautiful small 

 row of feathers on the top of the head, of a gold or orange 

 colour, which it has a power of drawing together, in such 

 a manner as entirely to conceal the little crest, hy laying 

 the feathers all flat upon the head ; and likewise to raise 

 them at pleasure. This is a beautiful, but rather rare 

 bird ; it is found in some of the woods near Oxford, also 

 in Warwickshire, and several places in Wales : k has 

 sometimes been seen in the southern parts of Scotland. 

 The female lays six or seven very small eggs, not larger 

 than peas, and feeds upon small insects. 



The Willow-Wren. This bird is little bigger than the 

 common wren. It is migratory, visiting us annually about 

 the middle of April, and taking its departure towards the 

 end of September. The female constructs her nest in 

 holes at the roots of trees, in hollows of dry banks, and 

 other similar places. This is round, and not unlike 

 that of the wren. The eggs are dusky white, and marked 

 with reddish spots, and are five in number. 



The Wood- Wren is a distinct species from the willow 

 wren, with which it has been often confounded. It is 

 distinguished by a more vivid plumage, and by frequent- 

 ing natural woods and plantations. Among other bird 

 belonging to this class may be mentioned the White- 

 throat, the Rcdtail, and the Greater and Lesser Petty- 

 chaps. 



WARBLKRS. The Pensile Warbler is neatly five 

 inches long. The bill is dusky ; the head grayish black; 

 and the back deep gray. The sagacity displayed by this 

 bird, in building and placing its nest, is truly remark- 

 able. She does not fix it at the forking of the branches, 

 as is usual with most other birds, but suspends it to 

 cinders hanging from the netting which she forms from 



VOL. 1J. 



All these soft-billed birds, thus prized for 

 their singing, are rendered domestic, and 

 brought up with assiduity by such as are fond 

 of their voices in a cage. The same method 



tree to tree, especially those which fall from branches that 

 hang over rivers and deep ravines. The nest consists of 

 dry blades of grass, the ribs of leaves, and exceedingly small 

 roots, interwoven with the greatest art ; it is fastened on, 

 or rather is worked into, the pendant strings. It is, in 

 fact, a small bed rolled into a ball, so thick and com- 

 pacted as to exclude the rain ; and it rocks in the wind 

 without receiving any harm. But the elements are not 

 the only enemies against which this bird has to struggle ; 

 with wonderful sagacity it provides for the protection of 

 its nest from other accidents. The opening is neither 

 made on the top nor side of the nest, but at the bottom: 

 nor is the entrance direct. After the bird has made its 

 way into the vestibule, it must pass over a kind of par- 

 tition, and through another aperture, before it descends 

 to the abode of its family. This lodgment is round and 

 soft, being lined with a species of lichen, which grows on 

 the trees, or with the silky down of plants. The birds 

 of this species have a very delicate song, which is con- 

 tinued throughout the year. They are natives of St 

 Domingo, and some other of the West Indian islands, 

 where they feed chiefly upon insects and fruit. 



THE LESSER BED-POLE (Sylvicola Petechia), belongs to 

 the tribe of Warblers, inhabits Pennsylvania, makes its 

 appearance in March, and retires in autumn. It frequents 

 bushy places, and is a solitary bird. It has the red-cap only 

 in summer. PI. LIX. fig. 1. 



CHATS. The Chat genus ( which embraces the Wheat 

 Ear, the Stone Chat, and the Whin Chat) are all com- 

 mon in Europe, and frequent moors and other open wastes. 

 They live solitary, or in pairs, and are wild in disposition. 

 They run with much celerity, and their food consists ot 

 insects and worms, which they take chiefly upon the 

 ground. 



The /Pinter Fau-vette is somewhat more than five 

 inches. It is frequently seen in hedges, from which 

 circumstance it has been called the hedge sparrow, but 

 it has no other relation to the sparrow than in the dingi- 

 ness of its colours ; in every other respect it differs en- 

 tirely. It remains with us the whole year, and builds 

 its nest near the ground ; it is composed of moss and 

 wool, and lined with hair. The female generally lays 

 four or five eggs, of a uniform pale blue, without any 

 spots ; the young are hatched about the beginning of 

 May. During the time of sitting, if a cat or other vor- 

 acious animal come near the nest, the mother endea- 

 vours to divert it from the spot by a stratagem similar 

 to that by which the partridge misleads the dog : she 

 springs up, and flutters from spot to spot, by which means 

 allures her enemy to a safe distance. In France the 

 hedge sparrow is rarely seen but in winter ; it arrives 

 generally in October, and departs in the spring for more 

 northern regions where it breeds. It is supposed to brave 

 the rigours of winter in Sweden, and that it assumes the 

 white plumage common in these severe climates in that 

 season. Its song is little varied, but pleasant, especially 

 in a season when all other warblers are silent : its usual 

 strain is a sort of quivering, frequently repeated some- 

 thing like the following tit -tit tititit ; from which, in 

 some places, it is called the titling. 



Wagtails and Pipits. All these birds frequent mea- 

 dows, and humid and marshy places, delighting in the 

 borders of rivulets and rivers. Most of them have an 

 undulating flight. They all run rather than walk; sel- 

 dom perch, sing, or cry, during the flight ; and construct 

 their nest on the ground. That of the white wagtail is, 

 however, sometimes found in a pile of wood, alongside ol 

 the banks, or in the hole of some wall whose base is washed 

 by wateis. Insects and small worms are their only aD- 

 u 



