and in its Neighbourhood in 1864. 53 



arrive in April; and certainly the harsh and discordant song of 

 the latter does not justify its specific denomination : the males 

 of both have the habit of perching on the topmost branch of a 

 tree_, and from thence they fly up in the air, uttering their short, 

 powerful song, while the females enjoy the concert lurking in 

 the grass beneath. Hypolais polyglotta, out of which several 

 species have been made, is not very common, and is much more 

 solitary in its habits than the Willow Wrens, which are all com- 

 mon, — Phyllopneuste rufa remaining here all the winter, while 

 P. trochilus, P. sibilatrix, and P. bonellii succeed each other in 

 the spring : the last is the scarcest, and has much the same note 

 and habits as the Grove Petty chaps. The Reguli, R. cristatus 

 and R. ignicapillus, are both common during the winter, especially 

 among the pines of the Cascine. The Wheatear [Saxicola 

 cenanthe) abounds in early autumn, being much esteemed as an 

 article of food ; and the Pratincola rubicola may constantly be 

 seen on the top of bean-sticks and in other prominent positions. 

 I never met with the Saxicola stapazina or the S. aurita, both so 

 common in the neighbourhood of Genoa. The Redstart [Ruti- 

 cilla phcenicura) is common in spring, and still more so towards 

 the end of summer; while Cyanecula leucocyanea (with the white 

 pectoral spot) is scarcer, and frequents the borders of marshes : 

 it has a curious way of spreading out its fan-shaped tail. The 

 Nightingale [Philomela luscinia) arrives early in April, and soon 

 makes all the neighbourhood resound with its melody. Dunnocks 

 are not common here ; but several times during the last winter 

 (which was most severe) I saw the Accentor alpinus, while I only 

 once stumbled across A. modularis, so comnion in England. 



Amongst the Parince, Parus major, P. ater, Cyanistes cyaneus, 

 Poecile palustris, and Orites caudatus are all common, while 

 the elegant Panurus biarmicus is pretty numerous in the Ma- 

 remma. But what surprised me most was the extreme abundance 

 of that lovely little bird, the Penduline Titmouse [Paroides pen- 

 dulinus). About the 2nd of March it first made its appearance, in 

 pairs, frequenting the tops of the poplars [Populus alba) which 

 line the Piaggie road. I became aware of its presence by the 

 shrill whistle, resembling the note made by anOrthopterous insect, 

 which the males continually uttered. Towards the end of the 



