214 ANTHUS 



nest being placed on the ground well concealed in the grass or 

 under shelter of a bush, and constructed of dry grass-bents 

 without lining or occasionally with a horsehair or two in the 

 cup. The eggs vary considerably, some having the ground 

 colour greenish grey, others brown, some are rich reddish brown, 

 the colour of old mahogany, others dull brown, and others again 

 greenish grey, closely spotted with brown, and I have seen some 

 with large brown scratches like those on the eggs of the Lap- 

 land Bunting. In size they average about -I 75 by 0*58. 



318. WATER-PIPIT. 

 ANTHUS SPIPOLETTA. 



Anthus spipoletta, (Linn.) Syst, Nat. i. p. 288 (1766) ; Gould, B. of Gt, 

 Brit. iii. pi. 11 ; Dresser, iii. p. 335, pi. 140 ; Gates, F. Brit. Ind. 

 Birds, ii. p. 312 ; A. spipoletta, Newton, i. p. 589 ; Sharpe, Cat. B. 

 Br. Mus. x. p. 592 ; Saunders, p. 141 ; Lilford, iii. p. 121, pi. 62 ; 

 A. aquaticus, Bechst. Gemein. Naturg. Deutschl. iii. p. 745 (1807) ; 

 Nanm. iii. p. 789, pi. 85, figs. 2, 3, 4 ; Gould, B. of E. ii. pi. 138. 



Pipit spioncelle, French ; Spioncello, Ital. ; Wasserpieper y 

 German ; Vodyanaya-Shevresha, Russ. 



ad. (Germany). Upper parts olivaceous brown tinged with grey, the 

 rump more olivaceous ; wings dark brown with paler margins to the 

 coverts and secondaries ; outer tail-feathers white obliquely 'on the 

 terminal third, the second and third tipped with white, rest of the tail 

 brown; supercilium yellowish buff; lores and sides of face greyish 

 olivaceous ; chin pale buffy white ; throat, breast, and under parts 

 generally pale rosy ferruginous ; centre of abdomen and under tail-coverts 

 dull i white washed with pale ferruginous; under wing-coverts and 

 axillaries greyish white ; bill and legs blackish brown ; iris dark brown. 

 Culmen 0'7, wing 3'55, tail 2'8, tarsus TO inch. Sexes alike. In the 

 winter plumage the under parts are white, marked on the breast, sides of 

 neck, and flanks with dull brown blurred spots and dashes. 



Hob. Central and southern Europe, of rare or accidental 

 occurrence in Great Britain, ranging across Asia to China, 

 wintering in north Africa, north-west India, and China. 



Frequents during the summer rocky desolate localities in the 

 mountains near water, descending to the lowlands in the 

 autumn. In its general habits it resembles the Meadow-Pipit, 

 and its song resembles that of that bird, but is deeper in tone 

 and harsher. It commences nidification in April or May, and 

 two broods are usually raised in the season. The nest is placed 

 on the ground, either amongst the herbage or amongst stones, 



