IQ2 BRITISH BIRDS. 



dingy white ; sides reddish yellow, marked with 

 narrow streaks of brown ; the ridge of the wings, 

 and part of the lesser coverts are olive brown ; 

 the feathers next the greater coverts dark brown, 

 deeply edged with dull white ; all the rest of 

 the wing feathers are darkish brown, more or 

 less margined with pale edges : legs and toes 

 dull yellow. 



This bird frequents woods and plantations, and 

 sits on the highest branches of trees, whence it rises 

 singing, to a considerable height, and descends 

 slowly, with its w T ings set up and its tail spread 

 out like a fan. Its note is full, clear, melodious, 

 and peculiar to its kind. It builds its nest on the 

 ground, commonly at the root of a bush, near the 

 edge of a coppice or plantation. The outside is 

 made of moss ; the inside of the stems of dried 

 grass, slightly bound together with a very few 

 hairs. The eggs, seven in number, vary much in 

 colour and marking, they are generally blotched 

 with deep vinous purple on a greyish ground. 



