88 
SVLVIAD.E. 
as upright supporters ; and when cut down, tlie reeds may 
be easily slipped out of the sides of the nest, without in 
the least injuring the structure. We have also found these 
nests in white-thorn bushes, and in the black-thorn, or sloe, 
which grows in abundance on some of the open plains in 
this district, always about the same elevation from the 
ground. The materials of which they are composed are 
various. One of our specimens is chiefly constructed of 
bents, rye grass, and green moss on the outside ; and inter¬ 
nally of roots, and the down of the willow, or the willow 
herb, with swans'’-down, and one or two feathers; lined 
with long horse-hairs. Another specimen is composed, on 
the outside, of tufts of dead grass, with the root attached ; 
the inside is formed of roots and the flowering tops of reeds ; 
with the down of the hare or rabbit, and abundance of horse¬ 
hairs. 
The nests of this bird are well built and compact, and 
generally have a good deal of warm lining interwoven in 
their substance; the sides of the nest are often an inch and 
a half in thickness, and the cup measures two inches across 
the top, and rather more in depth. The depth and sub¬ 
stantial thickness are highly necessary for the security of 
the little brood, as the slight supporters of the nest often 
yield to the force of the wind. In this small space of two 
inches in diameter, are reared six, and sometimes seven, 
nestlings. When the young birds leave the nest, they flutter 
about among their native reeds, and receive from the parent 
birds their minute insect food. Whether the nest is placed 
among reeds or in a low bush, it is alwa 3 ^s suspended; that 
is, the bottom of the nest never rests upon the branches 
beneath. We cannot agree with those authors who assert 
that this species chooses, in preference, for its nesting place 
spots inaccessible through the muddy nature of the soil ; 
since we have found their nests, without number, on the 
