36 RIVER WARBLER, 



egg just ready to lay, May 22nd., 1852, and found the nest on the 

 Don not far from Vienna. It builds in bushes which are thickly 

 grown through with reed-grass and Parietaria officinalis. The nest 

 is formed of dry reeds and grass leaves, tender twigs, strong grass 

 stems, strips of reed, etc., interwoven with dry meadow grass. It is 

 lined with soft grass. The eggs are four or five, which are greyish, 

 inclining to reddish ground-colour, upon which are indistinct pale 

 violet-grey and darker or lighter spots and streaks of reddish brown, 

 thicker at the base. They are unequally shaped, gently declining 

 from the base to the top." 



The Elver Warbler feeds on insects and flies. 



The male in breeding plumage has all the upper parts of the body 

 olive green, shaded with brown; the throat white; under wing and 

 tail coverts, and all the under parts of the belly whitish, shaded with 

 light olive green; the anterior part of the neck mottled with olive 

 green and ash-colour. Primaries, rich brown; first (true) the longest, 

 and the others gradually a little less down to the ninth, giving the wing 

 a long pointed character. This graduated position of the primaries 

 is shewn when the wing is in repose. The beak is dark brown 

 above, light below. Tarsi light yellow; iris, dark brown. 



The female has the upper parts like the male; the throat, neck, 

 and crop dirty white, feebly marked with long spots of ashy brown. 

 In autumn the feathers are bordered with ash. 



My figures of this bird and its egg are from specimens sent me by 

 M. E. Verreaux. 



Figured also by Naumann, Taf. 13; Gould, B. of E.; and Dresser, 

 B. of E. 



