BRITISH WARBLERS 
of the young. No mistake, however, could be made’ with 
regard to their attitude in this instance, since it was one of 
absolute neglect, no anxiety being shown at my presence, no 
desire to attend to, or even approach, the young. Previous to 
the last attempt which the male had made to distribute food, 
the female behaved in rather an unusual manner; the male, 
whilst quietly uttering his call note, approached her, upon 
which she spread her wings and began to wave them slowly 
up and down. Such an attitude is indicative of a desire for 
coition, the commencement, in fact, of a second brood, although, 
be it remembered, the young were not then dead. From this 
we can only infer that with the absence of a proper response 
on the part of the young, the parental instinct disappears. 
Until the first plumage is complete the young remain with 
their parents, and three or four can often be seen fluffing out 
their feathers in the sun, while perched close to one another 
in a row on the top of some thick bush, into which, upon 
the female uttering her quiet alarm note, they dive headlong 
with a flirt of the tail and rapidly disappear. Even after 
parental care has ceased to be a necessity they continue 
together in a family party, roaming about the fields and 
hedgerows in search of food. As the weeks pass by they 
gradually disperse, and begin to desert their native haunts, 
migrating towards the end of August and throughout 
September, some remaining as late as October. 
The song, although. by no means a_ highly developed 
performance, possesses a peculiar charm, which is no doubt 
enhanced by the lively actions of the bird while singing. The 
male continues in song, though with less and less vigour, and 
longer periods of silence, until the end of June. ‘Two points 
about the song are worthy of mention; firstly, the deterio- 
ration as the season advances, and secondly, the variation 
in different districts. With regard to the first of these, it 
only remains for me to say that I believe the explanation 
given of a similar peculiarity in the song of the Blackcap 
holds good in the present instance; and with regard to the 
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