208 BIRD LIFE THROUGHOUT THE YEAR 



the black-bryony and the crimson egg-shaped droplets 

 of guelder-rose and woody-nightshade remain un- 

 touched ; honeysuckle berries appear to be little 

 noticed and for sloes there is no demand. On the other 

 hand how generally popular are the " haws " of the 

 whitethorn and the "hips" of the dog-rose. The 

 thrushes and blackbirds, having stripped the mountain 

 ash, betake themselves to the elders, apparently because 

 this crop, which comes next in season, is but a fleeting 

 one. When the black, wine-juiced clusters are thinned, 

 the haws remain as a stand-by for the greater part 

 of the winter, with the possibility of recurrence to holly 

 and yew berries in time of scarcity. If the winter is 

 mild and open, so that worms and insects are obtain- 

 able throughout, the berries are neglected, but, if 

 recourse is had to them, we think that haws are 

 preferred to yew and holly berries, and with good 

 reason, if one may judge from personal experiment. 

 But the nuthatch when not pressed as to choice will 

 take yew-berries, and the wood-pigeon will fill its 

 crop with holly-berries when haws are equally available. 

 But then nothing in the form of grain, green crops 

 or berries appears to come amiss to this voracious 

 feeder, which is even said to grub up and eat the 

 tuber-like roots of the lesser celandine. After the 

 bean-harvest, too, the scattered pods left upon the 

 ground burst and afford grand entertainment to 

 pigeons and rooks. 



