266 THE ZOOLOGIST. 



they were nesting singly ; we found that it was generally worth while 

 to search the neighbouring trees, &c, and by so doing we several times 

 found a Redwing's, Brambling's, or Redpoll's nest, which we otherwise 

 might have missed. Most often, I think, we found a Fieldfare and a 

 Redwing breeding in company. All the nests we found were in 

 birches, and never more than ten feet up ; in fact, nearly all could be 

 reached without climbing at all. When incubating the old bird sits 

 very tight, and on one occasion, the nest being favourably situated, we 

 were able to take an excellent photograph of the old bird sitting at a 

 distance of six feet, the whole operation of putting the camera together, 

 &c, taking place in full view of the bird, not more than ten yards away. 

 It was not until we almost touched her that she flew off. 



Redwing (T. iliacus). — By no means common, but generally dis- 

 tributed, breeding in the small swamps in the woods or near the river, 

 and on the hills where the trees begin to merge into scrub. One nest 

 we found was on the high fjeld, in a large patch of scrub willow ; but 

 as high as this the birds were distinctly rare. All the nests were near 

 the ground, the highest being 2^ ft. from it, built in scrub willow on 

 an island in the river. A favourite situation was a dead birch-stump, 

 about six inches high, or in the fork where two or three stems of equal 

 size sprung from the same root ; while another nest was on a pile of 

 tree-loppings, where some wood-cutters had been at work. Most of 

 the nests contained young by June 26th, but the nest on the high fjeld 

 had five fresh eggs on June 28th ; this nest was absolutely on the 

 ground, at the foot of a dwarf willow, and the bird was nearly trodden 

 on by one of us before she flew off with loud chatterings. A few addled 

 eggs were got from other nests. We found the Redwings every bit as 

 noisy and bold when they had young as the Fieldfares, and though 

 from their situation the nests were not quite so easy to find, by hunting 

 where the birds made most noise they did not give much trouble. We 

 found that the cocks stopped singing as soon as the young were hatched, 

 and joined the hens in tending the brood, and doing their best to drive 

 off intruders. The song of the Redwing is quite short, and consists of 

 only a few notes ; but when near enough for one to hear the softer 

 notes, it is by no means devoid of sweetness, and personally, hearing 

 it for the first time, we thought it almost beautiful. Certainly it is 

 repeated with deadly monotony, and on several occasions, when trying 

 to get to sleep in the bright light of the midnight sun, we heartily 

 cursed an old Redwing who, from the top of a birch tree, was pouring 

 out his song about six or eight times a minute, hour after hour, the 

 whole night through. 



Wheatear (Saxicola cenanthe). — The Maskej ok Valley was quite un- 



