MOTACILLIN^E. MOTACILLA. 159 



the tendons large, the epithelium dense, thin, and slightly 

 rugous ; intestine short, of moderate width ; cceca very small, 

 cylindrical. Nostrils small, elliptical. Eyes moderate. Ear 

 large, elliptical. Head ovato-oblong, small, narrow ; neck 

 of moderate length ; body ovate. Feet of ordinary length ; 

 tarsus much compressed, with seven distinct scutella ; toes 

 moderate, much compressed, the first large, the lateral about 

 equal ; claws rather long, arched, laterally grooved, extremely 

 compressed, tapering to a fine point. Plumage soft and 

 blended ; no bristles ; wings long, broad, of eighteen quills, 

 of which nine are primary, the outer three nearly equal, and 

 longest ; inner secondaries very long ; tail very long, straight, 

 slender, rounded. 



The Wagtails are remarkable for their peculiarly slender 

 and elegant form, and the vibratory motion which the body 

 exhibits while they are standing or walking. While search- 

 ing for food they walk or run, but never hop. They moult 

 in autumn, and again partially in spring. 



93. MOTACILLA YARRELLI. PIED WAGTAIL. 



Male in winter with the forehead, throat, lower parts, and 

 two bands on the wing, white ; a black crescent on the fore 

 neck ; the head, hind neck, and rump, black, the middle of the 

 back grey ; wing-coverts black, the larger margined and tipped 

 with white ; quills black, edged with white ; tail black, the 

 two lateral feathers white, excepting part of their inner webs. 

 Female with more grey on the back, but otherwise similar. 

 Male in summer with the whole fore neck glossy black, as is 

 the back, except a tinge of grey about the middle. Female 

 similar, but with more grey. Young light grey above, grey- 

 ish-white beneath, with a dusky crescent on the fore neck. 



Male, 7|, Hi, 34, T %, H> i^iV Female, 7i, 11. 



A very common and elegant bird, generally distributed in 

 Britain and Ireland, but on the Continent hitherto observed 

 only in the north of France, in Sweden, and Norway. It usu- 

 ally frequents the margins of streams, ditches, pools, and lakes, 

 but is often seen in dry pastures, in stony places, and on house- 

 tops. It feeds on insects, larvae, worms, and small mollusca ; 

 has an elegant, undulated flight, and often pursues insects on 

 the wing. The nest, which is placed by the side of a river or 

 stream, on a rocky bank, in a quarry, or among grass, or on a 

 heap of stones, or in a hole in a wall, is composed of dry grass, 

 moss, and leaves, and lined with wool and hair, sometimes 



