Bunting. INSESSORES. BMBERIZA. 289 



of hair. It lays from three to five eggs, of a pale purplish- 

 white, with streaks and waving lines of chocolate-red, which 

 frequently terminate in spots of the same colour. It breeds 

 later than most of our indigenous birds, and the young are 

 seldom able to fly before the beginning of June. In winter 

 Yellow Hammers collect together, and associate with the 

 other granivorous birds that are, during the inclement sea- 

 son, constant intruders on the farmer's stack-yard. 



Their food consists of grain and other farinaceous seeds, Food. 

 but rarely of insects and worms. They are to be met with 

 throughout the greater part of Europe. 



Plate 52. Fig. 2. The male bird of the natural size. 



Head , neck, and upper part of the breast gamboge-yellow. General 

 more or less varied with olive-green. Back and scapu- ^^^^^ ^' 

 lars yellowish-brown, inclining to oil-green ; the centres 

 of the feathers being blackish-brown, passing into orange- 

 brown. Wing-coverts and secondaries blackish-brown, 

 deeply edged with brownish-orange. Greater quills 

 black, edged with gamboge-yellow. Rump brownish- 

 orange, margined with greyish-white. The two outer 

 tail-feathers on each side having a large white cone- 

 shaped spot on the inner web ; the rest being brownish- 

 black, edged with yellow. Belly and \mder tail-coverts 

 gamboge-yellow ; the sides more or less streaked with 

 brownish-orange. Legs and toes yellowish-broAvn. 



Fig. 3. The female, natural size. 



The female bird has less of the gamboge-yellow on the Female. 

 head and neck, and the under parts are more clouded 

 and streaked with brownish-orange. 

 The young strongly resemble the female, till after the au- 

 tumnal moult. 



voi,. I. 



