272 BIRDS OF SOMERSETSHIRE. 



foreign-looking bird : it is a rare summer visitant to 

 these islands. As far as this county is concerned I 

 only know of one instance of its having been taken, 

 and that was a good many years ago, at Orchard 

 Portman, near Taunton: this specimen came into 

 the collection of Mr. Popham, of Bagborough, 

 and is now in the possession of Mr. Bisset. 



The food of the Eoller, like that of most of the 



Fissirostres, is almost entirely insect, consisting of 



beetles, grasshoppers, and other insects and their 



larva?, to which, in this case, may be added worms 



and small frogs. 



As it is a summer visitor it probably would, if un- 

 molested, occasionally breed in this country, but, on 

 account of its bright gay plumage, this is not likely 

 to be the case. 



The nest is made in a hole in a tree or in a bank ; 

 it is lined with small fibres, straw, feathers and 

 hair. 



The description of this bird I have taken from 

 Yarrell : " The beak is black ; irides reddish brown ; 

 behind the eye is a triangular naked spot ; head, 

 neck and wing-coverts greenish blue, approaching in 

 richness to verditer-blue ; back, scapulars and 

 tertials yellowish brown, shoulders and rump China- 

 blue ; upper tail-coverts Berlin-blue ; the two middle 

 tail-feathers blackish green; the others for two- 

 thirds of their length bluish green, the shafts black ; 

 the outer feather on each side tipped with black ; 



