PASSERINE BIRDS. 117 



last, literally seizing each other by the throat, and thus powerless to fly, they whirl round and fall upon 

 the ground. In these battles the combatants seem blind and deaf to every danger, and risk their 

 lives in their endeavours to vent their fury. As soon as the battle with the beak and claws is concluded, 

 the musical strife is renewed, to be again terminated by a fresh onslaught of the furious and implacable 

 little rivals. The breeding time of these birds may be described as one uninterrupted series of contests, 

 for every male in the neighbourhood thinks it his duty to worry and rival his neighbour. 



The eggs, five or six in number, have very fragile shells of a delicate blueish-green colour, 

 varied with pale reddish-brown markings, and blackish-brown spots of various sizes and shapes. The 

 female sits for about a fortnight, and is relieved by her mate during such time as she requires 

 to go in search of food. The nestlings are fed by both parents exclusively upon insects, and 

 require to be supplied with nourishment for some time after leaving the nest ; when first hatched 

 they have a peculiar kind of cry, but soon employ the same call as the old birds. These latter have 

 scarcely parted from one brood than they commence preparations for a second, seeking another 

 place for a nest, and building again, but with less care than before, the female laying only from 

 three to four eggs. With the rearing of this second brood the duties of incubation are for the year 

 at an end. 



Chaffinches are much attached to their young, and utter loud cries at the approach of an enemy, 

 accompanying their screams by most significant actions. Naumann tells us that the male bird 

 concerns himself more about the eggs, while the female gives her affection principally to the nestlings. 

 We ourselves have not observed this difference. With respect to the tenderness shown to their 

 offspring, this species differs much from other Finches, for if young Linnets, for instance, are taken 

 out of the nest and placed in a cage, one may rest assured that the parents will continue to feed 

 them, whilst Chaffinches, on the contrary, would allow their young to starve, as many of their 

 admirers have learned by bitter experience. Exceptions to this rule are sometimes found, but 

 among the last-mentioned birds care for their own safety is generally stronger than parental love. The 

 Chaffinch is a cheerful little creature, and passes the greater part of the day in action, only reposing 

 from its fatigues during the noontide heat. Its movements are much more agile than those of the Bull- 

 finch, and of an entirely different character. On the branches it sits perched bolt upright, and seems 

 to balance its body as it moves upon the ground, with a kind of step that is half hopping, half running. 

 When on the twigs it prefers progressing in a sidelong direction, and flies very rapidly with an undulating 

 sort of course, spreading its wings slightly before perching. The call-note of " pink " or " finch " is 

 uttered with great diversity of sound and expression, and its song possesses a variety and beauty that 

 has earned the admiration of all who have heard it. To the uninitiated the changes in these sounds 

 are scarcely noticeable, but those who rear and study these birds have arrived at so great perfection in 

 their observations that they can give the proper interpretation to their various notes. Lenz even tells 

 us of nineteen (so-called) different expressions, but to enumerate them would be to weary our readers. 

 In former times the passion for these birds was so strong that men have been known to exchange a 

 cow for a Chaffinch, and though, at the present day, this mania has diminished in force, it has by no 

 means died out. In Belgium we hear of bets being laid about the singing of pet buds. On the 

 occasion of such trials of skill, the competitors in their cages are placed in rows upon the table, and 

 the conflict continues for an hour. Certain men undertake to mark down how often each individual 

 utters its notes, and the one that " trills " the oftenest is considered to have gained the prize. 

 Instances have been known of Finches uttering the required sound 700 times within the hour. 

 Chaffinches are well fitted for life in a cage ; but there is a strange idea afloat that they must be 

 blinded before they will sing well, and in many parts of Belgium this horrible practice is constantly 

 carried out ; many are captured, particularly in the breeding season, at which time they often 



