120 ORNITHOLOGY OF SELBORNE. 



often close to the post of a door where people are 

 going in and out all day long. The bird does not 

 make the least pretension to song, but uses a little 

 inward wailing note when it thinks its young in 

 danger from cats and other annoyances : it breeds 

 but once, and retires early 1 . 



Selborne parish alone can and has exhibited at 

 times more than half the birds that are ever seen in 

 all Sweden ; the former has produced more than 

 one hundred and twenty species, the latter only 

 two hundred and twenty-one. Let me add also, 

 that it has shown near half the species that were 

 ever known in Great Britain 2 . 



On a retrospect, I observe that my long letter 

 carries with it a quaint and magisterial air, and is 

 very sententious ; but when I recollect that you 

 requested stricture and anecdote, I hope you will 

 pardon the didactic manner for the sake of the in- 

 formation it may happen to contain. 



XLI. 



It is matter of curious inquiry to trace out how 

 those species of soft-billed birds, that continue 

 with us the winter through, subsist during the 

 dead months. The imbecility of birds seems not 

 to be the only reason why they shun the rigour of 

 our winters ; for the robust wry-neck (so much 

 resembling the hardy race of woodpeckers) mi- 

 grates, while the feeble little golden- crowned 

 wren, that shadow of a bird, braves our severest 

 frosts without availing himself of houses or villages, 

 to which most of our winter birds crowd in dis- 



1 The muscicapa grisola, Linn. 



2 Sweden 221, Great Britain 252 species. 



