52 
SYLVIAD.E, 
not found until after a considerable search, and much annoy¬ 
ance to our fingers, so well and deeply was it concealed : it 
was about two feet from the ground, and contained four eggs. 
This nest was composed almost entirely of green moss and 
roots, laid upon a rough foundation of dry twigs of heath. 
The nest of this bird is, however, mostly built of short 
tufts of dry grass, fine and loose roots, and other disjointed 
and very anomalous portions of vegetable rubbish, together 
with a few horse-hairs ; it is a rough and loose structure, 
and when complete has neither lining nor border. In all 
the nests we have seen of this species where horse-hairs were 
present, they have been singularly made use of, not being 
employed as a lining, but either woven into the loose sub¬ 
stance of the nest, or used outside to bind the whole toge¬ 
ther, being, in fact, the most substantial material employed. 
But in denying the Stonechats the praise of skill in the archi¬ 
tecture of their nests, we cannot but admire their industry in 
accumulating so large a quantity of materials together. 
The eggs of this species, which vary from five to seven 
in number, are generally smaller than those of the whinchat, 
more pointed in form, and more polished in substance. In 
colour they are usually light greenish-grey, blushed over 
with a tinge of reddish brown, which consists of minute spots 
most obvious at the larger end, where they sometimes form 
a distinct zone. 
The young birds in their first, or nestling plumage, are 
mottled with greyish-white. 
The food of the Stonechat consists chiefly of insects, aerial 
and terrestrial. In the autumn they eat caterpillars, and 
in winter frequent springs and the borders of rivers, where 
insects are usually to be found. ^ 
These birds roost upon the ground, and are sometimes 
taken by bird-catchers in their nets. When first taken 
prisoners, their wings should be tied together at the tips 
