WHITETHROAT 
nape. The smallest wing-coverts are of the sanre colour as the 
sides of the face, and the remainder of the wing-coverts are 
dark slaty brown, each feather being broadly margined with 
rusty buff. The tail is greyish brown, each feather being 
broadly margined with the same colour as the rump, and the 
outermost feather is whitish buff. The under part of the tail 
is greyish brown, narrowly edged with light buff. The throat 
is light ash colour, the crop umber ash, abdomen whitish ash, 
and the flanks umber buff, the same colour extending to the 
under tail-coverts. ‘The upper mandible is horn colour, lower 
light greyish flesh colour, and the iris dusky grey hazel. The 
feet are brownish flesh colour, and the claws grey. 
On leaving the egg the bird is naked, with eyelids com- 
pletely sealed. The skin is buff colour or reddish buff. At 
the root of the tongue, which is flesh colour, there are two 
darkish ash grey spots. The outer edge of the bill and the 
corner of the mouth are yellow, and the posterior part of the 
gape dull flesh colour. The feet are almost transparent buff: 
and the toes and claws much the same colour. j 
GEOGRAPHICAL DISTRIBUTION. 
Throughout England, Wales, and Ireland it is perhaps the 
most common of the warblers, and even to many parts of 
Scotland, including the Western Isles, it is a common summer 
visitant, but in the extreme north it becomes less abundant 
and more local, being a doubtful visitor to Caithness, and a 
strageler only in the Shetland Islands. To the Channel 
Islands it is a regular summer visitant. 
Over the greater part of Central and Southern Europe the 
bird is a common breeding species, but in the south of Italy, 
Sicily, and Sardinia it is not so common. In the central and 
southern parts of Sweden it is also common, but in the more 
northern parts it becomes rarer, although occurring up to 
63° N. lat. In Finland it is generally distributed and 
in many places in the south and west, as far north as Ijo, 
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