CONTRIBUTIONS TO AN AVIFAUNA OF BADEN. 173 



many, and has been observed near Karlsruhe since the year 1818. 

 Nests in the gardens and immediate neighbourhood of the town : 

 eggs pale green with orange spots. 



Ligurinus chlorls. Hardwald and elsewhere. Plentiful. 



Coccothraustes vulgaris. Schlosspark, Hardwald and Rhine- 

 woods. Shy, but considerably increasing in numbers. Large 

 flocks in February, 1888. 



Fringilla coslebs. On the Kaiserstuhl I noticed a curious 

 Chaffinch's nest, built against the upright stem of a walnut-tree. 

 It was supported solely by a piece of detached bark, and adap- 

 tively ornamented on the outside, exactly resembling a round 

 excrescence in the wood. Hedges being absent in the country, 

 many nests are constructed in low bushes, not more than five feet 

 from the ground, and externally formed of green moss. — F. monti- 

 fringilla. Sometimes visits the streets of Karlsruhe in winter, 

 but not often. The peasants of the Bavarian Palatinate kill 

 numbers of Brainblings — locally called Bo -hammer — in winter, 

 when they are in excellent condition, by observing where the 

 flocks settle down to roost, and shooting them by torch-light with 

 blowpipes and small bullets of clay, one by one, as they sit 

 huddled together in rows. As each bird drops, its neighbour 

 dreamily steps into its place and falls in its turn. The sport 

 continues till one bird, not sufficiently stunned, gives the alarm. 



Pyrrhula europcea. Common, especially in Schlosspark. 



Loxia curvirostra. Frequently observed. The tenacity of 

 life of this species has often struck me as unusually great. 



Emberiza miliaria. Barer than E. citrinella, which is one of 

 the commonest birds. — E. schoeniclus. Eggenstein, Daxlanden, 

 and other places near Karlsruhe. 



Sturnus vulgaris. Wildpark and elsewhere. 



Nucifraga caryocatactes. The few I have seen in the Black 

 Forest, probably residents, were remarkably tame. Others, 

 arriving in winter, may belong to the slender-billed form. 



Garrulus glandarius. Generally distributed, but occasionally 

 conspicuous by its absence in districts which it otherwise fre- 

 quents (periodical migration ?). There is a good deal of local 

 variation in the pitch and tone of its voice. It imitates 

 other birds — the Buzzard, for instance — to perfection. 



Pica rustica. Rarer than in England, and more so near 

 Karlsruhe than in the Rhine woods. 



