THE WHEAT-EAR CHAT. 301 



At that time they are very fat, and of exquisite flavour ; as 

 indeed all the chats are in the latter part of the summer. 

 It appears that the broods, when matured so as to be able to 

 shift for themselves, have the same disposition to resort to 

 new ground which was noticed in the other species ; for those 

 taken on the downs are chiefly young ones. 



The wheat-ear thus appears to be a bird of most hapless 

 lot. It is persecuted to death by superstition in one end of 

 the island, and killed and eaten by the cravings of luxury in 

 the other ; and yet the wheat-ear does nothing but good, for 

 its habits do not lead it in the slightest degree to destroy 

 any one thing that is useful to man. On the contrary, the 

 numbers which are scattered over the country destroy an 

 incredible number of animals that are really hurtful. But 

 the birds themselves appear to be indestructible ; from the 

 situations in which they build, and the industry with which 

 the callow young are fed by the parent birds, together with 

 the general watchfulness of the whole, fewer casualties befall 

 the wheat-ear than most of the other birds, and a dead one 

 is rarely seen ; neither are they much destroyed by birds of 

 prey. From the situations which they choose, they are 

 exempted from famine in dry seasons ; and those humid 

 rains that are destructive to so many other species of birds, 

 are seasons of extraordinary plenty to them. 



The wheat-ear is the largest of the British chats. It is six 

 inches and a half long, and the weight about six drachms, but 

 rather heavier when fat, and the female is a little heavier 

 than the male. The bill, legs, claws, and gape, are black, 

 and so are the quills, the middle tail-feather, the tips of the 

 side ones, and a streak from the bill under the eye to the ear- 

 covert ; but the black on the wing has a slight bluish tinge. 

 The rest of the upper part is bluish-grey, with the exception 

 of the rump, which is white : all the under part is white, 

 with the exception of the breast, which is buff-orange. The 



