294 cassell's book of birds. 



The HEDGE SPARROWS, or HEDGE WARBLERS {Tharraleus, or Accentor), have a 

 slender body, a comparatively weak and pointed beak, short, rounded wings, in which the fourth 

 quill is the longest, a moderate-sized tail, straight or incised at its extremity, and a high foot. 



THE HEDGE SPARROW, OR HEDGE WARBLER. 

 The Trie Hedge Sparrow, or Hedge Warbler {Tharraleus nwJularis, or Accentor modularis), 



is six inches long and eight inches and one-sixth broad, the wing measures two inches and three- 

 quarters, and the tail two inches and one-quarter. The female is considerably smaller than her mate. 

 The plumage of the adult bird is of a dusky reddish brown, spotted with a still deeper shade on the 

 shoulder and upper part of the back ; the head, fore part of the throat, and breast are brownish grey, 

 or slate-colour. In autumn the feathers on these parts have light edges ; the belly is brownish 

 yellow, darkly spotted, and the rump greyish brown ; the outer web of the quills is reddish brown, 

 striped once, in some instances twice, with a whitish hue ; the tail is of an uniform greyish brown. 

 The eye is light brown, the beak brown, and the foot reddish. The young are reddish yellow spolttd 

 with blackish brown on the mantle, and of a whitish hue spotted with greyish black on the centre of 

 the belly. The Hedge Sparrow inhabits the whole of Europe, from sixty-four degrees north latitude 

 as far soudi as the Pyrenees, Alps, and Balkan Mountains ; it is only occasionally seen still farther 

 north, but visits Southern Europe, Northern Africa, and Western Asia, regularly during its migrations. 

 In Great Britain it remains throughout the entire year. For some time after their return to their 

 native lands the Hedge Sparrows. resort to the open country, and take up their quarters on bushes 

 and hedges ; previous to the breeding season, however, they retire to the shelter of their favourite fir 

 or pine woods, or, though comparatively rarely, occupy groves of leafy trees ; they also exhibit a 

 decided preference for mountainous regions. 



In Great Britain this brisk little bird is a common frequenter of gardens, orchards, or hedgerows, 

 ■where it hops nimbly and almost incessantly from twig to twig, in search of the insects, larvae, and 

 seeds upon which it mainly subsists. According to Mr. Yarrell, it seldom or never touches fniit. 

 During the winter it is a constant visitor to our farmyards and houses, and when the weather is severe 

 is frequently reduced to seek a scanty supply of food from drains and gutters. All the movements of 

 the Hedge Warbler are equally agile and rapid ; it hops with the utmost alacrity over the surface of 

 the ground, climbs and scrambles amid the thickest bushes with wonderful agility, and flies lightly 

 and gracefully, not merely from bush to bush, but sometimes high into the air. Whilst in pursuit of 

 food it usually prefers to keep within the shelter of the foliage, but when about to utter its short, 

 sweet, and somewhat plaintive song, it perches upon a projecting branch at a considerable elevation, 

 and, if alarmed, darts directly downwards into the innermost recesses of the brushwood or shrubs 

 beneath. Mudie describes the voice of the Hedge Sparrow as being particularly plaintive in tone 

 during the winter months, and remarks that in severe seasons it utters its peevish cry with an 

 apparent feeling of suffering and desolation. The song of the males is often heard as early as January ; 

 and by the middle of February each has found a mate and retired to some quiet spot, in order to 

 commence building operations. The nest, which is generally finished by the end of March, is loosely 

 put together ; it is formed exteriorly of moss and fibres, and within is neatly and carefully lined with 

 interwoven horsehair and wool ; both parents assist in the labour of building, and have generally 

 completed their snug little abode by the middle of March : it is, however, exposed to danger and 

 observation, being placed in a bush or hedge, without, as yet, the screen of leaves, and often is 

 visited by the Cuckoo, with the view of depositing her progeny. The eggs, from four to six in 

 number, are of a blueish green colour. The first brood is hatched in April, and a second is produced 

 later in the season. Should the eggs be stolen from the nest, as is too frequently the case, the 



