cxxxv. 



LOXIA CURVIROSTRA. (I.inn. 

 Crossbill. 



I AM not aware of any instance in which the Crossbill has 

 been detected breeding in this country, excej)! the one which 

 the liberality of Arthur Strickland, Esq. enables me to record. 

 The nest and eggs of this species were taken from a larch fir 

 near his residence at Boynton, near Burlington, in Yorkshire, 

 duiing the summer of 1829. The nest is made of sticks loosely 

 put together, and crossed in a similar manner to ihat of the 

 Ring Dove, mixed with white lichens, and very like the more 

 clumsily built nests of the Hawfinch. Mr. Selby is of 

 opinion, that the Crossbill breeds with the earliest spring, or 

 even in winter, having killed several in this country early in 

 June, which showed plainly from the denuded state of their 

 breasts, that they had been engaged in incubation some time 

 previous to their arrival. Those which we saw whilst in 

 Norway, in May and June, were always in flocks, and had 

 either not commenced or else had done breeding. 



