BLUE-BREASTED WARBLER. 
65 
and stalks, green moss, and dry grass or reed tops, lined with 
horse-hair, or the white down of cotton grass. The eggs are 
very beautiful, the shell thin and delicate, and of a bluish- 
green colour, and are nearly round in form, resembling much 
those of the pied flycatcher ; they are five or six in number. 
The male frequently assists the female in the task of incu¬ 
bation, and never wanders far from the spot, but sometimes, 
by his presence and his song, betrays the vicinity of the nest. 
The young birds, before they are able to fly well, flutter 
along the ground, and at that time much resemble the young 
of the redbreast. The Blue-breasted Warbler breeds early, 
the first brood being sometimes on the wing by the end of 
May. 
By Selby, Yarrell, and Temminck, this bird is placed 
among the Redstarts, but, judging from its form and appear¬ 
ance, it would seem to have more affinity to the redbreast 
and the nightingale. In its manners, also, it has numerous 
and striking points of resemblance to these w’arblers, al¬ 
though in its habits it is rather less sylvan and more aquatic. 
This species never frequents thick woods, nor is it found 
among tall trees, except in the immediate neighbourhood of 
water ; it, however, inhabits, according to Temminck, the un¬ 
derwood on the skirts of the forests that abound on the con¬ 
tinent where this bird is most plentiful. Its food is chiefly 
sought on the ground, and consists of terrestrial insects, small 
aquatic beetles, with their larvae and chrysalidse, also the 
larvse of gnats, which are sought in mossy swamps. 
As autumn approaches, the Blue-breasted Warbler is seen 
to draw nearer to inhabited and cultivated districts, and to 
seek, in potatoe, bean, and cabbage fields, the insects that 
are to be found in great plenty in such localities; but even 
when brought near, by necessity, to the neighbourhood of 
man, this species is little seen, owing to its retired and shy 
habits, but quietly seeks its food, which consists, at that 
