558 On the Nesting of Birds in Wiltshire. 



sort to the general hue of their surroundings. This is curiously 

 the case with the highly coloured eggs of the Ptarmigan, Grouse, 

 and Quail ; with the sombre tints of those of the Sedge-warblers, 

 the Wagtails, Buntings, and Larks ; and especially the mottled 

 marbled eggs of the Nightjar. But with the great majority of 

 the eggs of birds, I should say that the colouring is so conspicu- 

 ous as rather to attract notice, and that not only from man, who 

 is in comparison but dull of sight at the best, but from the 

 pilfering Magpie, Jay, or Carrion Crow, marauders who are ever 

 on the look-out for a meal, such as an unguarded nest of eggs 

 would supply. See the Hedge Accentor, one of the earliest 

 breeders among our commoner birds, whose nest can readily be 

 discerned in early spring in the quickset hedge, as yet destitute 

 of leaves ; can anything be more conspicuous than the bright- 

 blue eggs of that familiar warbler ? See, again, the ruddy eggs 

 of the Redbreast, the speckled eggs of the Willow Wrens, the 

 blue eggs of the Thrush, the brick-red eggs of most of the Falcons, 

 the green eggs of the Crows, the mottled eggs of the Pipits, the 

 Garden Warbler and the Blackcap, the spotted eggs of the 

 Finches, and the blotched eggs of the Crakes ; and it must be 

 admitted that these variously-coloured eggs, however pleasing to 

 the eye of the naturalist, are undoubtedly too conspicuous for 

 safety, unless they are in some way concealed. But in order to 

 protect their eggs from observation, it is the habit with some 

 species on leaving the nest to cover their eggs with leaves, moss, 

 or flags, according to their several surroundings. Familiar in- 

 stances of this we have in the Pheasant, the Partridge, and the 

 Little Grebe. With others, again, the female bird which broods 

 over the nest is of dull and sombre colour, which harmonizes 

 with the tints of the nesting site ; and as long as the eggs are 

 covered by the sitting bird, they are, of course, completely shielded 

 from view. For securing this object, we may notice how many 

 of the hens are of sober, subdued colour when compared with 

 the brilliant plumage of their respective mates : for example, the 

 Blackbird, Chaffinch, Bullfinch, Pheasant, and the whole family 

 of Ducks. 



