THE RUFOUS WARBLER. I05 



mens of which are stated to have been taken 

 near Plymouth, and to have occurred there for 

 the first time in Britain/ From a want of ac- 

 quaintance with its habits, this bird has been 

 erroneously called the Rufous Sedge Warbler. 

 It is never found in the neighbourhood of sedge, 

 but on the driest ground, amidst scrub and thick 

 underwood. In fact, as regards structure and 

 habits, it differs in so many respects from the 

 river warblers that it has been generally sepa- 

 rated from them, and, except for convenience, 

 ought not to be included in the present sketch. 

 Its real home seems to be North Africa and 

 Palestine ; but it is not uncommon in some 

 parts of Southern Europe, and is found (acci- 

 dentally only) as far north as the British 

 Islands. 



1 Cf. Bellamy's " Nat. Hist. South Devon," p. 205. 



