THE SPECIES. 119 



The American Blue-Winged Teal — Dimensions, Lm ; Eggs Ko — paid us one visit, as did 

 also the Green-Winged Teal, of which no further mention is necessary. 



The Garganey — Dimensions, Mi ; EggF, Ma — is a spring visitor, resident only where 



Srotected. He has a grey bill, while the Teal's is black, and he has bluish wing coverts, 

 [c swims high in the water, and flies high in the air and very rapidly. His call is like the 

 Teal's, but the " crik," which the Teal gives occasionally, is his usual cry, and hence he is 

 locally known as the Cricket Teal. The female has no gloss on the wing bar. The nest is 

 always on the §;round and often away from water, and it is built of grass and leaves, and lined 

 with down having long white tips. It contains from 8 to 14 eggs, 



Rallus. Plate xxiv. RALLIDM, 



282. aquaticus, loj in. Water Rail. Spotted brown above ; greyish 



below ; axillaries black barred with white ; flanks 



black with narrow white bars ; bill reddish ; 



remiges 26. 



The Water Rail — Dimensions, Jd; Eggs, If — is a bird of the marshes, never flying if it can 



escape by running in and out through the reeds. Its flight is low and laboured, with the 



legs hanging. It can swim and it can dive. Its call is '* kreek," and in thebreeding season 



it " sharms," The female is not so bright in colour as the male. The nest is always on the 



ground, generally amid a clump of rushes or osiers, and it is built of reeds and flags, and 



contains from 5 to 11 eggs. 



Recurvirostra. Plate xxviL SCOLOPA CIDM. 



304. avoceita, 18 in. AvoCET. White and black above ; white below ; bill 



black, long, pointed, and curved upwards ; remiges 



30 ; legs grey. 



The Avocet — Dimensions, Oe ; Eggs, Na — was formerly one of our regular summer 



migrants, but is now merely a straggler. He bobs his head as he swims ; and flies with his 



head in, his beak down, his legs out, and his wings arched. His call is " klint." 



Regulus. Plate iii. TURDINj^ (Passeridae). 



30. cristatus, si in. Gold-crested Wren. One black streak and 



that over the eye. 



31. ignicapillus, 3^ in. F[RE-crested Wren. Three black streaks, the 



middle one through the eye, the lowest forming a 

 moustache. 



The Gold-crested Wren — Dimensions, Aa ; Eggs, Aa — is the smallest European bird. Its 

 flight is straight and fluttering when short, but dipping and steady when long. Its call is 

 " zit, zit," and its note "chip chirrrr, if-he, if-he," somewhat weak and distant. The female 

 has the crest lemon yellow. The nest is hung from a horizontal branch of some coniferous 

 tree, and is almost a sphere of felted moss, cobweb, wool, and lichen lined with feathers. It 

 contains from six to ten eggs. 



The Fire-crested Wren — Dimensions, Ac ; Eggs, Ab — is practicalljr the same size as the t 

 Gold-crest, althfaugh our average is higher. It is merely an occasional visitor ; the first 

 recorded specimen was killed by a cat at Cambridge, in 1832, 



Rhodostetliia. Plate xxxi. LARID^. 



355. roseat 14 in. Wedge-tailed Gull. Head and neck white 



with a narrow black collar ; back grey ; under parts 

 rosy ; outer web of first primary black ; bill black ; 

 legs red. 



The Wedge-tailed Gull — Dimensions, Me — once provided a specimen for the Leeds 

 Museum, but as it is the only specimen claimed as British, we can leave to others the un- 

 ravelling of the doubt as to whether it was mounted from a relaxed skin or from the flesh. 

 It is an Arctic species. 



Rlssa. Plate xxxi. LARIDM. 



367. tridactyla^ 15 in. Kittiwake. White and grey above ; tail white ; 

 first to fifth primaries tipped with black, sixth barred 

 with black ; white below ; bill yellow ; remiges 31 ; 

 legs brownish black. 



The Kittiwake— Dimensions, Mp ; Eggs, Op — so called from its call or " kittiwake," is ■ 

 bird of the rocks found only on the coast. It is the most graceful of the gulls in flight. In 



