398 BRITISH BIEDS. 



docks. Numbers come to these islands to breed in April, 

 and leave again about October, migrating across the Channel. 



The Siskin (Ohrysomitris spinus) 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 (Ligurinus 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 wheat. 



Buntings {Emherizinm). 



Of the eleven species of Buntings found in Great Britain, the 

 Yellow-hammer {Emberiza citrinella), the Eeed-bunting {E. scTm- 

 niculus), and the Corn-bunting [E. miliaria) are the commonest. 



The Yellow-hammer (E. citrinella), has its head, neck, breast, 

 and lower parts generally yellow streaked with dusky-brown, 

 the upper surface being reddish-brown. The female is not so 

 yellow as the male. They may be found in all parts of Great 

 Britain, building their slight nest of grasses and moss on or near 

 the ground, in April and May. Both male and female help in 

 incubation. Young and adults feed off insects in the summer, 

 but in autumn fruits and seeds take the place of insects, and in 

 winter corn as well. They unite in flocks in the winter, and 

 may be seen in the fields busily engaged hunting for the weed- 



