52 BRITISH BIRDS' EGGS. 



THE WHINCHAT. Saxicola rubetra. On our commons, 

 abounding in whin or furze, and even in some more culti- 

 vated districts, this bird is abundant. The nest, slightly 

 formed, is often placed at the foot of a' furze or thorn bush, 

 and the eggs, six in number, are greenish-blue, sometimes 

 finely dotted, and occasionally spotted with rust-colour. 



THE STONECHAT. Saxicola mbicola. Some of this spe- 

 cies are supposed to remain with us during the entire year ; 

 but about Christmas last we searched in their favourite 

 localities in vain for one, although the winter was favour- 

 able, and the county one of the most southern, and it was 

 not till the end of January in the present year we saw a 

 single individual. It is possible they may have found shel- 

 ter beneath the cliffs of the southern coast of the Isle of 

 Wight ; otherwise their migration must have been to some 

 far more distant region. This species is usually seen in 

 pairs, flitting from bush to bush, and almost invariably 

 settling on the topmost sprays of the furze, while at the 

 foot of the bush its nest is most effectually hidden from the 

 view of all but the most persevering intruders. The eggs, 

 generally five or six in number, are of a pale- greenish 

 colour, freckled with brown, and often enriched with a zone 

 of the same colour round the larger end. (PL V. fig. 33.) 



