302 INSECTIVOR.E. 



colours of the wheat-ear are very pure ; and the bird has a 

 remarkably clean appearance. 



As is the case with many or most of the migrants that 

 come to Britain to breed, the males come before the females ; 

 and as the instinct of the season leads each pair to separate, 

 they come singly, though many are often seen near the south- 

 east after they land. The song of the male wheat-ear is very 

 sweet, but it is low, and heard at a very short distance. They 

 have been occasionally seen late in the season, so that it is 

 possible some of them may winter in the southern parts ; but 

 if they do, they hide themselves in the copses or other shel- 

 tered places, and are seldom if ever seen, at least by those 

 who would be disposed to notice and record their appearance. 

 The distance to which their northern migration extends, and 

 the weakness of their wings (though they are better winged 

 than any of the other chats), would lead to the conclusion 

 that they do winter in some parts of the country. 



WAGTAILS (Motacilla). 



The wagtails get their name from the remarkable, rapid, 

 and almost incessant motion of their tails. There are many 

 other birds that flirt the tail upwards and downwards, but 

 perhaps none that do it so habitually as the wagtails ; and 

 the elevation is accompanied by a jerking spread, which 

 relaxes when it is depressed, so that it appears to have two 

 simultaneous motions. 



These birds, which all either leave the country in the 

 winter or migrate to different places within it, are natives, 

 and while they sojourn with us, inhabitants of peculiar loca- 

 lities. They frequent the margins of waters, especially clear 

 streams and pools in retired places, and form their nests 

 under projecting stones or in holes near the banks. They 

 feed chiefly upon aquatic insects and upon worms. 



The principal characters are: the head small and pointed; 



