336 THE ZOOLOGIST. 
Warblers frequented a ballast-pit not far from the Tone, and 
close to the Great Western Railway, about a mile to the east 
of Taunton. When this spot was visited, a little search resulted 
in the discovery of the nest, which then contained four eggs. 
I was anxious that these should be hatched off, in order that 
Coates might be able to snare the old birds and the young. He 
was therefore directed to keep careful watch upon it, and after 
another visit he returned to say that one young bird had been 
hatched, and that the other three eggs appeared addled, and that 
a pair of Red-backed Shrikes were in dangerous proximity to the 
nest. Mr. Marshall therefore had one of the addled eggs taken 
from the nest, which precisely resembled the eggs | have described 
above, and appointed a morning for Coates to attempt to snare the 
old birds. Unfortunately, when this morning arrived, it was dis- 
covered that some birds-nesting boys had been beforehand; the 
herbage was trampled down in all directions, and the precious nest 
had disappeared. 
We were, however, consoled for this misfortune by hearing the 
next day that Coates had discovered that the other pair of Marsh 
Warblers had built a second nest. The small withy-bed which 
was selected for it appears to be a favourite resort for birds. It 
is barely the eighth of an acre in extent, yet besides the Marsh 
Warblers it gave shelter to a pair of common Whitethroats and 
their nest, a pair of Sedge-birds and nest, a pair of Bullfinches 
and their brood; and high up in a hazel-bush overhanging the 
stream a dome-shaped nest was found, which on examination 
proved to be built of bay, in the form of a perfect dome, with 
a small hole for ingress, and contained three freshly-laid eggs 
of the House Sparrow. We all agreed that it was a very unusual 
site for a Sparrow’s nest, and a singularly neat nest for the bird. 
While watching for the Marsh Warblers, a Lesser Spotted Wood- 
pecker suddenly rose from the willows by the stream and almost 
flew in our faces, and there were numerous Chiffchaffs and Willow 
Wrens all round us, and doubtless many other nests in the little 
cover besides those we detected. The male Marsh Warbler cap- 
tured is a very perfect specimen, and when picked up its breast 
was suffused with a delicate primrose-yellow, a tint which proved 
extremely evanescent, and had almost disappeared before the bird 
was completely cold. We took careful notes of the coloration of 
the soft parts directly the bird was in our hands, and observed that 
