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( 3« ) 



ORD. III. GEN. XI. WARBLER. 



SPE. XV. WHEAT-EAR. 



PI. 112. 



Motacilla cenanthe. Lin. Syft. I. p. 332. 



Le Cul blanc, Vitrec, ou Moteux. Brif. Orn. III. p. 449. 



This bird is about five inches and half in length : the bill black : eyes hazel : 

 the top of the head, back of the neck, and back, of a bluifh grey : over the 

 eye is a dirty white ftreak : through the eye a black one, ending in a patch be- 

 hind it : the under parts of the body yellowifh white, changing to reddifh on 

 the breaft, and to a pure white at the vent : the tail feathers white, tipped with 

 black, except the two middlemoft, which are all black : the feathers of the 

 wings and quills a dufky black, edged with reddifh brown : the legs black. 



The female refembles the male, except in being paler, having the ftreak over' 

 the eye lefs diftin6t, and the mark behind the eye brown inftead of black. 



The wheat-ear for the moft part comes in March, and departs in October, 

 but is not regularly difperfed, being in fome parts fcarcely known, in others' ex- 

 tremely plenty. About Eaftbourn, in Suffex, great numbers are annually taken. 

 In autumn it grows very fat, and is efteemed a great delicacy. It generally 

 makes a neft on the ground, under fhelter of a clod, {tone, or the like, and 

 compofed of dry grafs or mofs, mixed with wool, and lined with hair and fea- 

 thers. It lays from five to eight eggs, of a light blue colour, deepeft towards 

 the large end, as reprefented in PI. XXV. Fig. 4. 





