470 BIRDS OF SOMERSETSHIRE. 



The nest, which is large and made of reeds and 

 rushes,* is usually placed in a moist situation so 

 moist that man cannot obtain a footing, t 



In this bird the beak, by which it is most easily 

 distinguished from Bewick's Swan, is black towards 

 the point and yellow at the base, the yellow running 

 further down the side of the beak than on the top, 

 extending on the sides beyond the nostrils ; the lore, 

 or space between the beak and the eye, is bare of 

 feathers and yellow ; the irides are dark ; the whole 

 of the plumage is white ; the legs, toes and webs 

 black. The young birds in the middle of October 

 have the beak black at the end; a reddish orange 

 band across the nostrils ; the base and lore pale 

 greenish white ; the general colour of the plumage 

 pale greyish brown ; a few of the smaller wing- 

 coverts white, mixed with others of a pale buffy 

 brown. 



The egg is of a uniform pale brownish white. 



BEWICK'S SWAN, Cygnus Bewickii. This bird, 

 which, like the last species, has occasionally been 

 taken in this county, but only in hard winters, 

 much resembles that bird, both in plumage and 

 habits : it may, however, be distinguished by its 

 smaller size and by the beak, the yellow part of 

 which does not occupy so much space or extend so 



* Yarrell, vol. iii., p. 1 94. 



f Meyer's ' British Birds,' vol. vi., p. 63. 



