216 BIRDS OF SOMERSETSHIRE. 



taught to speak ; but in this accomplishment it falls 

 very far short of the Haven and the Jackdaw. 



The Starling is a beautiful bird when seen close, 

 in consequence of the glossy metallic tints with 

 which its whole plumage is shot, though at a little 

 distance it appears to be a dark, common-place look- 

 ing bird enough. The beak is light yellow, the tip 

 only being dark horn-colour, nearly black; irides 

 brown : the whole of the feathers, except the quills, 

 tail and wing-coverts, are peculiarly shaped, being 

 very narrow and pointed; the head and neck are 

 beautifully shot with glossy dark green and purple, 

 with a small spot of light brown at the tip of each 

 feather ; the colouring of all the upper parts is the 

 same, but the feathers are larger and consequently 

 the light brown tips are more conspicuous ; the 

 greater wing- coverts have on the outer web the same 

 metallic tints ; the inner webs are dusky ; the whole 

 of the outer web and tip are margined with light 

 brown ; quills and tail dusky, each feather narrowly 

 margined with light brown ; the secondary and 

 tertial quills are more broadly margined, and the 

 outer webs slightly shot with green; the neck, 

 breast and belly have the same glossy metallic tints 

 of purple and green, and each feather is tipped with 

 white ; the feathers are of the same narrow-pointed 

 shape ; very old birds have fewer of the white tips. 

 I have one in my collection which has no white tips 

 to the feathers of the neck and breast ; the under 



