SYL VIABLE. 91 



The food of the Stonechat consists of flies, grubs, 

 caterpillars and other insects, of which it devours 

 large quantities. In hard weather it occasion ally 

 waits on any one who is digging, watching for any- 

 thing that may turn up ; and one of the writers in 

 the 'Zoologist' says that on one occasion he saw a 

 Stonechat so intent on its search for food that it 

 was caught hy a hat being placed over it by the man 

 who was digging. 



The Stonechat is always conspicuous, both in 

 consequence of the situation which it chooses, and 

 of the strong contrast of colour which it presents. 

 The male bird has the beak black; irides dark 

 brown ; head, neck and throat black ; on each side 

 of the neck, just below the black, is a spot of white ; 

 back, scapulars and rump black, each feather edged 

 with rufous ; wing-coverts the same, except those of 

 the tertials, which are white, making a conspicuous 

 spot of that colour both on the closed and open 

 wing ; upper tail-coverts white ; all the quills dark 

 dusky, almost black, edged with rufous ; tail nearly 

 black ; breast and flanks bright rufous ; belly and 

 under tail-coverts nearly white ; legs, toes and claws 

 black. 



The Stonechat is one of those birds which, as 

 I have before remarked, make a material change in 

 their plumage after the autumnal moult, at which 

 time it somewhat resembles the female : the feathers 

 of the head and neck are at that time so broadly 



