614 



BRITISH BIRDS. 



cotton threads of a piece of stockings evidently torn to pieces by tlie bird. 

 He also states that in Palestine the bird never appears to use wool or hair 

 in the construction of its nest. 



The Woodchat Shrike is a very handsome bird. The male has the 

 crown of the head and the nape^ extending onto the upper back^ rich 

 chestnut j lores white ; the forehead^ the space round the eye^ the ear- 

 coverts^ the sides of the neck^ and the upper part of the back are black ; 

 the rump is white^ shading into grey on the lower back and longest upper 

 tail-coverts ; the wings are blacky the basal part of the primaries whitCj 

 forming a conspicuous spot, and the secondaries tipped with white ; the 

 tail is black, all the feathers, except the two central ones, white at the base 

 and tipped with white, the two outermost feathers being almost unifornii 

 white on the outer web. The general colour of the underparts is pure 

 white. Bill black; legs, toes, and claws dark brown; irides hazel. The 

 female resembles the male, but has the red parts duller, and the parts 

 which are black in the male are brown suffused with red ; the underparts 

 are huffish white, shading into pale buff on the flanks. Tlie young in 

 first plumage are reddish bro'mi above, mottled and barred with dark 

 brown and rufous ; the wings are brown, broadly margined and tipped 

 with rufous-brown ; the tail is brown tipped with rufous, the outermost 

 feathers much paler; the underparts are pale buff, thickly barred with 

 brown; the bill is pale brown; and the legs and claws are also much 

 paler than in the adult. 



