Tss British Birds, with their Nests and Eggs. 



places its bulky nest : ruins on islands in lochs used also to be occupied, and 

 rocks that were near to the water. A good account of the singular nest, which is 

 built in the form of a truncated cone, has been given bj^- Wolley, who states that 

 in its shape it not a little resembles the great nest of the wood-ant, the sticks 

 project ver}- slightly be^'ond the sides, and are built up with turf and other compact 

 materials ; the summit is of moss, very flat and even ; and the cavit}- occupies a 

 comparatively small part of it. The eggs are laid at the end of April, or in the 

 beoinnino- of Mav, and are three in number, rarely four, and are the most beautiful 

 eggs produced b}- any of the Fakoiiida:. Their ground colour is creamy or buff3' 

 white, and on it are large blotches of rich chestnut red, or claret colour, with 

 underlying shell markings of purplish grey ; some of the eggs are marbled all 

 over with purplish red and white ; others are creamy white with the smaller end 

 covered with rich chestnut ; there are numerous varieties, all handsome ; some of 

 the eggs are rather pointed at one end ; others are elliptical ; the}- varj' in size 

 from 2 "68 to 2'i7 inches, by from i'94 to i"64 inches. The female rarel}- leaves 

 the nest while she is incubating, and is fed with fish brought her by the male. 

 The eggs figured on plate xiii are from the writer's cabinet ; it was hard to make 

 a selection, but it is believed that those given are tj^pical. 



The Ospre}' is found in most parts of the world, never far distant from water ; 

 it is dispersed throughout Europe, Asia, North America, Australia, Tasmania, New 

 Zealand, New Guinea, most of the islands of the Malaj^ and Indian Archipelagos, 

 and over the continent of Africa. In North America where it is abundant and 

 regarded as a sacred bird by the fishermen, because flying out to sea it points to 

 them where the fish are congregated, it is gregarious at the breeding season. As 

 man}- as three hundred nests have been counted on one island near the eastern 

 extremity of Long Island, New York. 



The cr}- of the Osprey is ver}"- musical. Wollej^ states that Ospreys are ver}^ 

 constant in returning 3'ear after year to their old stations, and even after one or 

 both birds have been killed in the previous season, he had frequently seen indi- 

 viduals flying near the now deserted eyrie. 



The adult male has the head white, broadly striped on the crown with blackish 

 brown, which colour forms almost a patch before and above the eye ; ear-coverts 

 and a stripe to the hind neck blackish-brown ; feathers on back of head and nape 

 elongated, lanceolate, washed with 3'ellowish, and some terminated with blackish- 

 brown ; upper parts dark brown, with a faint purplish gloss ; tail dark brown ; 

 under parts white ; the breast faintl}- marked with pale brown and dull ochreous 

 brown ; bill blackish horn ; cere blue-grey ; irides bright yellow ; legs pale lead- 

 blue ; claws black; length 22 inches. The feathers on the thigh are much 



