140 THE BIRDS OF SUSSEX. 



In January 1861, a flock of some sixty or seventy flew over 

 my head in a large plantation of larch, near Crawley, when 

 my attention was drawn to them by their letting fall several 

 cones of that tree. They settled at no great distance, when 

 I had an excellent view of their parrot-like manners, as they 

 frequently used their bills in climbing to different parts , of 

 the branch, or, standing on one foot, held the cone in the 

 other while extracting the seed ; and I observed that they fre- 

 quently carried a cone with them when flying from tree to tree. 



I once received a nest, with eggs, from St. Leonards 

 forest in March, but I have not recorded in what year. It 

 was about twenty feet from the ground, on the branch of a 

 Scotch fir, close to the stem. The nest, or perhaps only a 

 portion of it, the only one I have myself seen, was constructed 

 of dry grass, lined with finer grass, and a little rabbit^s fur, 

 and finished with horsehair. Gilbert White mejjtions this bird 

 as appearing annually at Ringraer. Mr. Knox (0. R. p. 212) 

 states that " in the autumn of 1835, great numbers of these 

 birds were observed in most of the pine and larch woods in 

 Sussex. They were abundant at Salt Hill, near Chichester, 

 and in that neighbourhood, and at Parham.^' Mr. Jeffery 

 observes that in July 1866, a male was obtained at Chidhara, 

 and another, the following September, at Sidlesham. 



PARROT CROSSBILL. 



Loxia pityopdUacus. 



The habits of this species, which was formerly considered 

 only a large variety of the Common Crossbill, but is now held 

 to be distinct, are similar to those of its congeners. I have a 

 specimen in the red plumage, which was shot in St. Leonards 



