THE BUNTINGS. 73 



Eggs. Four to six in number. Ground-colour pinkish or 

 greyish stone-colour, the underlying markings being grey and 

 the overlying spots purplish-black. Writing lines are sometimes 

 present, but never so strongly marked as in the eggs of the Yel- 

 low and Cirl Buntings. Axis, 0-75-0-8; diam., 0-55-0-65. 



THE CORN-BUNTINGS. GENUS MILIARIA. 

 Miliaria, Brehm., Isis, 1828, p. 1278. 



Type, M. miliaria (Linn.). 



While the other Buntings are remarkable for somewhat 

 fariegated plumage, especially with respect to the tail-fea- 

 thers, which generally have a patch of white on the outer 

 ones, very conspicuous when the bird is flying, in the genus 

 Miliaria the wing is shorter than the tail, and the inner 

 secondaries are lengthened and nearly equal to the primary 

 quills, like the wings of Larks and Wagtails. There is no 

 white pattern on the tail. Only one species of Miliaria is 

 known, the Corn-Bunting, which is singularly like a Lark in 

 plumage. 



I. THE CORN-BUNTING. MILIARIA MILIARIA. 



Ember iza miliaria. Linn., S. N., i., p. 308 (1766); Macg., Br. 



B., i., p. 440 (1837); Dresser, B. Eur., iv., p. 163, pi. 



208 (1871) ; Newt. ed. Yarr., ii., p. 38 (1876) ; B. O. U. 



List Br. B., p. 59 (1883); Seeb., Br. B., ii., p. 148 (1884); 



Saunders, Man., p. 199 (1889); Lilford, Col. Fig. Brit. B., 



pt. v. (1887); Wyatt, Br. B., pi. 17 (1894). 

 Miliaria miliaria^ Sharpe, Cat. B. Brit. Mus., xii. p. 552 (1888). 



Adult Male. Above brown, with black centres to the feathers, 

 less distinct on the lower back and rump ; wing-coverts brown, 

 with sandy-buff edges, whiter on the margins ; head like the 

 back, and similarly streaked ; sides of neck ashy-white, streaked 

 with black ; tail-feathers brown, with a shade of ashy-white 

 near the end of the inner web ; cheeks and throat dull white, 

 with a moustachial line of black spots ; under surface of body 

 dull white, with some triangular spots of black on the throat, 

 more distinct on the fore-neck and breast, which are tinged 

 with rufous-buff; sides of body browner and streaked with 

 black ; bill horn-brown, tinged with rufous, the lower mandible 

 yellow ; feet pale fleshy-brown ; iris dark brown. Total length, 

 7-5 inches ; culmen, o"6 ; wing, 3*85 ; tail, 2*75 ; tarsus, 0*95. 





