76 BRITISH BIRDS. 



often stuck on outside to harmonize with the surroundings. 

 Eggs : 4 to 6 ; pale greenish or greyish-blue, spotted and 

 clouded with reddish-brown ; sometimes whole surface is 

 suffused with brownish-red, while unmarked bluish eggs are 

 not rare ; size '78 by "56 Call-note : a sharp pink, pink; 

 has also a sweet and musical song. 



92. Fringllla montifringilla, Linn. BRAMBLING. 



Hab. Northern Palasarctic region, north of lat. 60 in 

 Europe and 50 in Asia. Migrates southward in winter. 



Male in spring : feathers of head, nape and mantle 

 bluish-black, with more or less concealed whitish bases ; 

 rump white, slightly mottled with black ; lesser wing- 

 coverts buffish-orange, with white tips ; greater coverts 

 black, broadly tipped with white ; quills blackish, with 

 narrow white outer edges ; tail black, outer feather each 

 side partly white at base ; throat and breast pale brownish- 

 red ; belly whitish ; sides mottled with black ; under wing- 

 coverts yellow ; bill blackish ; tarsi brown. Length 6'oo. 

 In winter feathers of head and mantle have broad rufous 

 margins, and bill is yellow, except for a dusky tip. 

 Female : duller ; head and mantle are dark brown. 



A common winter visitor to Scotland and fairly so to 

 east of England ; more rarely to west and Ireland. The 

 late E. T. Booth found it nesting in Perthshire in 1866. 



GENUS XLII. CANNABINA, Boie (-1828). 

 Bill moderate, almost conical, tip rjpinted and sharp. 

 Wings rather long, ist primary absolete, 2nd or 3rd 

 longest. Tarsus moderate ; hind claw rather long, curved. 



93. Cannabina eannabina (Linn.). LINNET. 

 Hab. Europe, north to South Scandinavia ; also N.W. 

 Africa and Madeira. 



