EGGS AND EGG-COLLECTING. 147 



THE BLUE TIT. 



BLUE TITS lay from seven to nine eggs, of a white under- 

 ground, spotted with red-brown all over, but more nume- 

 rously at the larger end. Their nests are composed of 

 moss, feathers, and hair, and will generally be found in 

 holes in trees or walls. 



THE BLACKCAP. 



THE Blackcap locates her nest amongst nettles and brambles, 

 generally near the ground, but not resting upon it. It is 

 a very slovenly bird, as far as the structure of its nest goes, 

 which is composed of fibrous roots and the stems of cleavers. 

 It lays four or five eggs of a whitish underground, blotched 

 and spotted, with two shades of brown or pale delicate pink, 

 with dark red spots and blotches. 



THE PARTRIDGE. 



FROM ten to twenty eggs are laid by the Partridge, of a 

 pale yellow-brown, without any spots. There has been 

 some diversity of opinion as to the time of hatching, some 

 holding that the third week of June is the time, whilst 

 others say the middle of the following month ; but I 

 think that the locality in which the bird is found has 

 something to do with this difference of time. She does 

 not make any nest worth speaking about, merely scratch- 

 ing and trampling the grass, weeds, &c., down. Her nest 

 is situated on the ground in standing grass, cornfields, 

 among brackens, weeds, &c., mostly in arable districts. 



