104 



CASSELLS BOOK OF BIRDS. 



nest ; they are of a light green, or greenish-blue colour, covered with pale violet or black spots, and 

 reddish-brown dottings that form streaks or lines. The female sits upon her brood for about a 

 fortnight, and is tended by her mate during that time ; both parents combine in the care of their 

 offspring. The nestlings are fed at first upon insects, then with seeds that have been softened in 

 the crop, and afterwards with the same in their natural state. Should there not be a second brood, 

 the young remain for a long time under parental tuition. 



Those who wish to rear these birds should take them from the nest while still unfledged, and the 

 sooner their education commences the more profitable it is likely to be. In the woods around 



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fifilP 

 mm* 



FEMALE BULLFINCH AND NEST. 



Thiiringen hundreds of young Bullfinches are caught annually, and sent, when properly educated, to 

 the principal capitals of Europe, and even to America. The course of instruction begins from the 

 first day of their capture, and the principal thing that is necessary is that their instructor should 

 be able to whistle the air he is teaching them with great clearness and precision. Persons have tried 

 to teach these little birds to sing with a hand-organ, but with little success, for even the flute cannot 

 produce a sound so delicate as that uttered by the lips of a good whistler. Some Bullfinches can 

 learn to sing two or three tunes without any great difficulty, whilst others never acquire precision. 

 Some will retain a tune during their whole life, and others again forget it entirely during the moulting 

 season. The voice of the female is much inferior to that of her mate. We have often heard the 

 Redpole and the Blackbird pipe extremely well, but these do not approach the Bullfinch in the 

 purity, flexibility, and fulness of its notes. It whistles in such flute-like tones that the listener's ear 



