422 BRITISH BIRDS. 



say their chief remedy for the " caddis-worms " is to let the 

 beds run dry, when the sparrows soon clear them off. Put to 

 this the fact that they devour large quantities of weed-seeds, 

 and then we may not think so ill of this cosmopolitan bird. 

 We know not what might happen if we eradicated them — an 

 almost impossible act to perform, as they are immensely prolific, 

 having often three broods in the year. They are, however, far 

 too abundant, and should be thinned out to some considerable 

 extent. The young, like all finches, are fed entirely on insect 

 food, and thus it is advisable not to destroy the nests, but to 

 kill off the birds later in the year. Another great fault is 

 that of waging war against the beneficial martins. 



The Goldfinch {Garduelis elegans), although not nearly so 

 common as formerly, is still met with all over Britain. Like 

 all finches, the young are fed on insects ; the adults live upon 

 the seeds of thistles, knapweed, groundsel, and docks. Numbers 

 come to these islands to breed in April, and leave again about 

 October, migrating across the Channel. 



The Shiiin {Clinjsomiiris sj^iinus) breeds in the central and 

 north-eastern portions of Scotland, although a few nests are 

 found every year in England. The young are fed mainly on 

 plant-lice, while the adults devour great numbers of weed-seeds. 



The Greenfinch (^Lii/uriiaiK chloris) is often very destructive to 

 seeds ; but the young are fed upon caterpillars, and as they are 

 very ravenous, there is no doubt but that the greenfinch does 

 some good. The larvae of the winter moth are taken in 

 numbers by them, yet as a seed-destroyer in the garden this 

 bird is most noxious. Its nest is built in hedges, in shrubs, 

 in ivy, &c., — a loose structure built of fibrous roots, moss, and 

 grasses, with a lining of finer material and feathers. The first 

 nest is built in April, and a second brood usually follows. 

 Flocks of greenfinches may be seen on the stubbles in the 

 autumn, where they not only feed off weed-seeds but also 

 attack newly-sown wlieat. 



