62 



even somewhat cautious and shy in out-of-the-way places where it is not molested. Its call-note 

 is not so harsh as that of the Linnet, but rather more so than that of the Redpoll ; and its song, 

 which is cheerful and pleasant, is rather better than the song of the latter species, which it some- 

 what resembles. The male is a very industrious songster, and may be heard uttering his song 

 during fine, bright weather in the winter; and when caged it sings throughout the year. 



It breeds early in May, selecting for the purpose of nidification open moors or rocky and 

 stony localities. Mr. Collett says that in June he met with it numerous on the sterile treeless 

 islands off the Trondhjemsfjord, in Norway, where it seeks for food on the grass-grown 

 mountain-ledges. 



Dr. Saxby, writing respecting the nidification of the Twite in the Shetland Isles, says : — " One 

 very favourite situation for the nest is under a long strip of turf which has been nearly reversed 

 by the plough. In such a situation I once found the commencement of a nest, and derived much 

 interest from watching the progress of the work. When one of the birds disclosed to me the site 

 chosen for its future habitation by flying out suddenly at my feet, I could perceive nothing more 

 than a slight hollow which had been scraped beneath the turf; and although I frequently visited 

 the spot in the course of the day, nothing more was seen of the bird until about twenty hours 

 afterwards, when the pair began placing a number of fibrous roots in front in the form of a half- 

 circle, the back part of the cavity being left untouched. In a few hours' time some stalks of 

 plants were added, and from four o'clock in the afternoon until noon next day the birds disap- 

 peared. They next laid the foundation of the other half of the circle, continuing steadily at 

 their task until the structure was equal in height all round. They now appeared more eager to 

 proceed, working so diligently that by the evening of the fourth day the mass of roots, grass, and 

 stalks of plants formed a perfectly circular wall, an inch and a half in height and about two 

 inches in thickness, somewhat loose and irregular upon the outside, but with the inside neatly 

 interwoven, and sloping rather suddenly to the bare patch of ground enclosed. On the morning 

 of the fifth day I observed a few feathers upon the ground in the centre, and the number rapidly 

 increased until the sides were covered more than halfway towards the brim ; in the evening the 

 feathers were almost concealed by a quantity of cow's hair, among which a little wool was inter- 

 mingled. More work was done upon that day than any other. Having often found rabbit's fur 

 in the nest of the Twite, I now procured a quantity of that material, and strewed it over the 

 ground not too near, lest it might cause suspicion. Although it was soon discovered, the birds 

 were not quite contented, using it rather sparingly, and working it into a felt-like mass with 

 wool and the hair of cows and ponies. This process appeared to be one of difficulty and to 

 require great care ; for it was not before the evening of the eighth day that the task was com- 

 pleted, the brim of the cavity being by that time neatly finished off with a few long black 

 horsehairs, and measuring exactly two inches and a quarter in diameter. On the ninth day 

 the birds were not to be seen ; but by the morning of the tenth day the first egg was laid. 

 Every succeeding morning I found an additional egg, until five had been laid, and the female 

 began to sit. It is seldom that the lining of the nest touches the ground, as it did in this 

 instance, a layer of fibrous roots &c. being generally interposed. I observed that the thickness 

 of the lower part of the nest is greatest in those specimens which have been found in bushes far 

 above the ground. On another occasion, in August 1865, my attention being attracted by the 



