396 BRITISH BIRDS. 



tain extent partial to open places, but to those near some cover to which it 

 can retire the instant it is disturbed. Nothing perhaps in bird-music sounds 

 more beautiful and charming than the song of the Blackcap ; and in the 

 pairing-season it is heard to best advantage^ when those combats for the 

 choice of mates so frequently occur. Dixon thus describes its song : — 

 " How rich and melodious is the song of the Blackcap ! It is given forth 

 from the topmost branches of the tallest trees^ from the more lowly shrubs^ 

 and from the midst of the dank and dense vegetation where he builds his 

 nest. His notes are varied, almost as much so as the vernal notes of the 

 Song-Thrush. Of the peculiar richness of its tone no pen can adequately 

 speak : it must be heard to be appreciated. The loudness of its tones will 

 not unfrequently cause you to suspect a much larger bird is uttering them ; 

 and in the spring I have heard him sing as loud as the Thrush. If you 

 wish to see this little warbler in the act of singing you must steal a march 

 upon him by noiselessly creeping amongst the dense undergrowth, and, 

 provided you advance ' with cautious step and slow,'' your wish will be 

 gratified. You will find that he sings as he hops from branch to branch 

 in search of insects, or as he remains stationary for minutes together, 

 pouring forth his notes, his little throat quivering and swollen, his head 

 turning restlessly from side to side, and his jet-black crown contrasting 

 so richly with the golden green of the vegetation around. And then how 

 beautifully he modulates his music! You hear a soft plaintive note sound- 

 ing as though its author were a hundred yards away ; gradually it rises in 

 its tone ; you think the bird is coming nearer ; louder and louder become 

 the notes, till they sound as if a Blackbird, Song-Thrush, Wren, Robin, 

 and Warbler were all singing together. You perchance east your eyes into 

 the branches above^ and there see the little black-capped songster, and 

 after watching him find that all these lovely notes, low and soft, loud and 

 full, come from his little throat alone and when at the same distance from 

 you — so great are his powers of modulation." 



It is probable that the Blackcap sings throughout the winter. I have 

 heard it in Italy in full song on the 21th of February. On the outskirts 

 of the city, down along the left bank of the Arno, lies the " Rotten Row " 

 of Florence, the Cascine, a narrow plantation, two miles along, intersected 

 with walks and drives. Some of the trees are spruce-fir ; many are 

 evergreen oak; and many of them are overgrown with ivy; so that the 

 plantation looks quite green even in winter. Although it was very cold 

 in the shade, the blazing sun was hot enough ; and from end to end the 

 Cascine rang with a chorus of bird-music, amongst which by far the most 

 prominent was that of the Blackcap. There were generally three or four 

 singing against each other ; and sometimes they quite drowned the notes 

 of other birds — the Robins, the Blackbirds, and the shrill chatter of the Italian 

 Sparrow. 



