492 THE ZOOLOGIST. 



class, though by no means the only ones, whilst the Columbida may be 

 regarded as exceptions to the general rule, although Columba anas 

 frequently deposits its eggs in holes of pollards and rabbit-burrows. 

 Amongst the British Hirundinidce, as is well known, the Swallow alone 

 has spotted eggs, and these I have on several occasions noticed to be more 

 heavily marked when the light had direct access to the top of the nest 

 than when it was built under the rafters of darkened barns or deep down in 

 chimneys. I can, however, offer no suggestion in explanation of these 

 apparently rapidly acquired modifications in the same species, though it is 

 possible that the absence of colour in the eggs of birds which habitually 

 breed in the dark — as Cotyle riparia — may have been acquired to render 

 them more conspicuous to the parent birds, and the general use of white 

 feathers by the Sand Martin may be ascribed to the same cause. I took a 

 cup-sbaped nest, apparently referable to the Spotted Flycatcher in a high 

 hawthorn-hedge bounding a private garden. This nest is formed of slender 

 roots, moss, and fine bleached grass-stems, compacted with spider's web, 

 and is lined internally — but most thickly towards the bottom — with reddish 

 hair, amongst which a few coarse black horse-hairs are twisted ; the cavity 

 is unusually deep ; the nest contains only two eggs, rather large for the 

 species, of a pale green tint, sparsely spotted with russet, excepting at 

 the large end, where they become denser and form a mottled patch ; 

 a similar egg was lent to me for illustration by Mr. Bidwell. Excepting 

 in strength and size, I have observed little variation in the nests of the 

 Greenfinch, the principal differences consisting, so far as 1 have seen, in 

 the presence or absence of wool, the substitution of fine fibre for hair in the 

 lining, and the partial substitution of bleached grasses for twigs and coarse 

 roots in the external structure. The eggs, however, vary much more, 

 a clutch of five in one of my uests being zoned with dull blood-red or dark 

 russet mottling, upon which are a few short darker red-brown linear markings. 

 In four nests of the Chaffinch, taken during the present year, I observe 

 little variation, excepting that one of them is thickly lined within with 

 thistle-down, and a second has the wall on one side very narrow and 

 adorned with a single very jaunty white feather; last year, however, J found 

 a very aberrant nest, somewhat roughly constructed of roots and fibre, with 

 very little adornment of moss and lichen, but a fair sprinkling of fine 

 worsted; the interior is lined with thistle-down and hair, the latter being, 

 as usual, most prominent. A large nest, undoubtedly of some species of 

 Finch, was pointed out to me by a lady friend in a laurel-bush in her 

 garden. This nest was deserted and contained only one egg, very similar 

 to that of the Chaffinch ; the structure is as large and strong as that of an 

 old Greenfinch, aud is formed of densely matted roots and iibre, a little 

 moss, the flower-heads of various grasses, aud a few stout twigs ; towards 

 the inside a little wool is introduced amongst the roots, and this again 



