THE CHAFFINCH. 



545 



Although the beautifully-spotted eggs are plentiful in the col- 

 lection of every nest-hunting school-boy, they do not come into 

 his little museum for some time. The eggs of the blackbird, 

 thrush, and hedge-warbler are generally the first to be found, 

 because the nests in which they are contained are so conspicuous. 

 But the nest of the Chaffinch is never easily seen, and its discov- 

 ery requires a special training of the eye. 



Neat of the Chaffinch. 



An experienced nest-hunter will always detect it, and it is 

 amusing to watch the bewildered expression of a novice to whom 

 a Chaffinch nest is pointed out, and who can not see it in spite of 

 all the indications of his instructor. The bird likes to find the 

 fork of a tree or bush, where several branches are thrown out 

 from one spot, and so as to form a kind of cup in which the nest 

 can lie. Tall hawthorns, or even sloe or crab-trees, especially if 

 they grow in thick hedges, are favorite trees with the Chaffinch, 



Mm 



