66 ornithologist's text-book, 



inches and a half, and its breadth eleven inches. 

 The bill is narrow, flattish, and a little bent at the 

 point ; its colour is black : the eyes hazel ; the 

 eyelids white: upper part of the head and neck 

 deep brown : back and shoulders dark lead colour 

 spotted with white: tail and wing coverts dark 

 lead colour : quill feathers deep brown : chin and 

 fore part of the neck white : breast orange colour : 

 belly and thighs brown : vent white : legs dusky. 

 In young birds the belly is white. 



" Linnaeus places the Water Ouzel in the genus 

 stare; and indeed it bears considerable resemblance 

 to the Starling, in the flatness of its bill, and the 

 shortness of its tail. But I have thought it advise- 

 able to class the Ouzels by themselves, as an inter- 

 mediate link between the Stare and Thrush genus ; 

 since they seem to form a gradual passage from one 

 to the other, in the order in which they are here 

 placed, which will appear evident from a view of 

 the figures. 



" This species is very solitary, and is found in 

 the more northern parts of England, in the neigh- 

 bourhood of streams, living on insects and small 

 fishes. The latter it takes by diving and running 

 under water after them, contrary to the habit of 

 land birds. It makes a nest on the ground, on the 

 banks of rivulets, of hay and dried fibres of roots, 

 lining it with dead oak or other leaves, and making 

 an entrance or porch to it with moss. The eggs 

 are five in number ; for which see the plate." — 

 Birds of Great Britain, Vol. II, p. 56. 



"The Dipper (Cinchisj. 



" There is only one British species of Dipper ; 

 but it has so many peculiar characters, that it can- 

 not be properly included in any other genus, as 

 there is no other British bird that much resembles 



