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ORD. III. GEN. XI. WARBLE: 



SPE. XVIII. COMMON WREN. 



PL 115. 



Motacilla troglodytes. Lin. Syft. I. p. 337. 

 Le Roitelet. BriJ. Orn. III. p. 425. 



This is a fmall bird, rarely exceeding three inches and three quarters in 

 length. The bill and legs are dufky brown : eyes hazel : the plumage above 

 chiefly of a reddiih brown, crofled every where with obfcure dufky lines : the 

 cheeks marked with dirty white, mixed with ruft colour : over the eye is a pale 

 reddifh white ftreak : the under parts, as far as the breaft, nearly of the fame 

 colour, but afterwards incline to brown crofled with dufky lines, and dafhed 

 with dirty white. 



This bird, though fmall, has a pleafing fong, much louder than could be ex- 

 pefted from its fize, and fings all the year. It makes a very curious neft, in 

 fhape almoft oval, chiefly compofed of mofs, and lined with hair and feathers. 

 It builds mod frequently in hollows of decayed trees, often in out-houfes, and 

 fometimes in woods, in a bufh near the grounds and lays from ten to eighteen 

 eggs : for which fee PI. XXVI, Fig. 3 . 



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