94 BIRDS' EGGS 



plastered with mud and lined softly. There 

 are four or five eggs, bluish or greenish grey, 

 speckled and splashed with brown (Plate 

 VII., Fig. 3). The rook is of much use in 

 killing grubs ; but it also destroys a consider- 

 able amount of grain and potatoes, so that on 

 the whole it is regarded as an enemy by the 

 farmer. 



The Missel-thrush, or Storm Cock (Turdus 

 viscivorus) builds openly in the fork of a tree, 

 sometimes quite near a path. It uses grass, 

 moss, and wool. It lays four to six eggs, 

 which are greyish-white, with red and violet 

 spots (Plate VII., Fig. 4). 



The nest mentioned by Wordsworth, in 

 the lines I have quoted, was probably that of 

 the Hedge Sparrow, or Dunnock (Accentor 

 modularis). It is one of the common hedge- 

 nests, and is built of moss and grass, lined 

 with wool and feathers. The eggs are four to 

 six in number, and of a bright bluish-green 

 (Plate VII., Fig. 5). They cannot be mis- 

 taken. This bird is very often the foster 

 parent of the young cuckoo. 



The Sedge Warbler (Acrocephalus phrag- 

 matis) chooses a low bush, or a tuft of grass, 



