PERCHING BIRDS. 103 



turing flies on the wing, springing up in the manner of 

 the flycatchers, and again returning to its perch. I 

 once watched a female clinging to the wall of my house, 

 and apparently employed in picking out insects from 

 the joints of the bricks; she was thus engaged a con- 

 siderable time, shifting her position easily, and using 

 her tail as a fulcrum, in the manner of the woodpeckers. 

 They are very fond of the tender leaves of radishes 

 when first peeping through the ground, and often cause 

 much annoyance by their depredations, but they are 

 good friends in other ways, freeing us from many insect 

 foes. 



The pretty Mountain Finch (F. montifringilla) is a 

 constant winter visitor, chiefly frequenting the beech 

 woods, where it feeds upon the mast. Sometimes a 

 straggler may be seen associated with linnets, but they 

 generally visit us in small flocks, consisting only of 

 their own species. The abundance of beech trees in 

 Thoresby and Rufford Parks affords plentiful supply of 

 mast ; there the mountain finch is found in varying num- 

 bers. They do not exhibit much shyness, but permit 

 themselves to be approached within a few yards while 

 they are feeding ; I have even seen them come close to 

 the house without showing signs of alarm. They gene- 

 rally leave us about the middle of March for their 

 northern breeding grounds. 



I was for some time unaware that the Tree Sparrow 

 (Passzr montanus, Ray), was an inhabitant of our dis- 

 trict. I had often found nests with their eggs in hollow 

 trees, but I had always considered that they were those 

 of the house sparrow. Having, however, shot one of 

 the owners of a nest which I found in a cavity of a pol- 

 lard willow, I saw at once my mistake, and recognised 



