THE B RAMBLING. 47 



entirely. It seeks its food in wild mountainous places, 

 and does not approach inhabited localities unless driven 

 near them by stress of weather. The note of the bird 

 is a continuous " chuck, chuck/' " fayh, fayh," which 

 in confinement is often uttered during night-time ; but in 

 the spring time this is changed to a far more pleasing 

 warble, several low notes being uttered in succession, 

 followed by a hoarser note, which is somewhat prolonged ; 

 this portion of its song has been compared to the words 

 " Chip-u-wa-a-ay." 



As already intimated, the Brambling is a handsome 

 little fellow. The length of the bird is about six and a 

 quarter inches ; the upper part of the bill is dusky, and the 

 lower portion yellowish-white; his brown; top and sides 

 of the head and back of neck, in the winter, rich mottled 

 grey and black, the feathers being black at the base and 

 grey at the tip ; in the spring these brown tips disappear, 

 leaving a beautiful velvety black, which remains until the 

 following autumn; chin, throat, and upper part of breast rich 

 orange fawn, lower part a yellowish-white; the greater wing- 

 coverts are black, tipped with orange fawn ; lesser coverts 

 a rich orange fawn, feathers tipped with white ; when the 

 wing is closed there is an oblique bar across it ; the larger 

 under wing-coverts have a small tuft of elongated feathers, 

 and the lesser coverts are bright yellow ; the feathers on 

 the rump are white, which is very conspicuous in flight ; 

 tail is black, the feathers edged with buffy white, the outer 

 feathers having a patch of white ; the tail is forked, upper 

 coverts are black, lower ones white or yellowish-white ; 

 legs, toes, and claws a lightish brown. 



The female is smaller than the male ; her plumage is 

 less pure in colour, and the markings are more mottled in 



