136 



VERTEBRATA. 



These birds are common in Europe, several species being known in Great Britain. The ge- 

 nus MOTACILLA includes the Pied Wagtail, M. Yarrellii, which is seven inches long; upper 

 j.art-s sides, and flanks, black, variously marked with white ; breast, belly, and under tail-coverts, 

 white. It 'is a very sprii,ditlv bird, ever in motion, running about or moving from place to place 

 bv short, undulating flights, "uttering a cheerful note, and alighting again on the ground with a 

 sylph-like buoyancy, and a graceful, fanning motion of the tail. This species remains in South- 

 ern Europe throughout the vcar. 



Other species are the Wiiitk Wagtail, M. alba, a summer visitor to Britain ; the Gray Wag- 

 tail, .U. hoarula, chiefly c(Uitined to Southern Europe; the Gray-iieaded Wagtail— called Ber- 

 ijerunmttc in France— J/, fava, common in Central and Northern Europe, but rare in Great Britain ; 

 the Yellow Wagtail or Ray's Wagtail, M. Haj/i, avoiding wet lands, and seeking arable fields;' 

 a rare species throughout the continent; the White-winged Wagtail, M. lugubris, is found in 

 Eiistern Europe ; the King-King, M. spcciosa, is but four and a half inches long, and belongs to 

 Java. There arc still other species in Asia and Africa, and it may be remarked that those we 

 have noticed as found in Europe are also, for the most part, found in these other divisions of the 

 eastern continent. 



THE MEADOW PIPIT. 



THE PIPITS OR TITLARKS. 



These birds resemble the wagtails, and also make a close approach to the larks. They feed on 

 seeds and insects. Of the genus ANTHUS there are several species. The Meadow Pipit or 

 Titlark, A. pratensis — Farlouse des pres of the French — is six inches long; grayish-red above, 

 and yellowish-red below. It frequents stony and arid slopes, lives on insects, worms and slugs, 

 makes its nest in the sand against a rock or stone, and lays four to six eggs. The female has the 

 habit of many other birds, that of pretending to be wounded, so as to draw off attention from 

 her eggs or her young, when a stranger approaches them. It is a summer visiter throughout the 

 temperate parts of Europe. 



Other species are the Tree-Pipit, A. arboreus, found as a summer visitor in wooded and culti- 

 vated districts from Italy to Denmark; the Rock-Pipit, A.])cfrosus — the Field-Lark, A. campes- 

 tris of Bewick, Pipi-Rotisselin of the French — inhabiting flat shores along the sea; is found in the 

 maritime parts of Southern Europe: Richard's Pipit, A. Hicardi, frequents old pastures; found 

 in Europe along the ^lediterranean, and rarely in France and England ; and A. Spinoletta — A. 

 aquaticus of Bechstein — common throughout Europe. These are all migratory. 



The American Pipit or Titlark, A. Ltidovicianus — the Brown or Hcd Lark of Nuttall — is 

 six and a half inches long ; upper parts grayish-brown ; beneath dusky white ; breast spotted 

 with black ; eggs four to five ; builds in mountainous districts ; winters in Louisiana, and migrates 

 northward as far as latitude 03° in summer. It breeds in Labrador and the fur countries. 



