BRITISH WARBLERS 



whitish grey, the claws having dark brown points, and the 

 soles are yellowish. The sexes are alike in plumage. 



The autumn plumage of both sexes differs from the spring 

 plumage in being darker and slightly more olive green on the 

 upper parts and richer buff on the under parts. 



Nestling. — The general colour of the upper parts is very 

 similar to that of the adult but rather more olive, a faint 

 superciliary stripe being noticeable. The throat is whitish, 

 upper breast and flanks olive brown, the latter being rather 

 lighter and more buffish, abdomen pure white, and the under 

 tail-coverts pure buff. The wings and tail differ but little as 

 regards colour from those of the adult. The bill is lavender 

 brown, flesh colour at the base, and the flanges bright yellow 

 surrounded apparently by crimson, which is caused by the rich 

 blood red colour of the inside of the mouth. Iris is dark 

 greyish brown and the lores and region round the eye dark 

 lavender. The feet are light lavender, and the front part of 

 the tarsus and the upper part of the toes bluish. 



GEOGRAPHICAL DISTRIBUTION. 



Except in the west of Cornwall and the southern part 

 of Cumberland, this bird seems to be a common breeding 

 species in England. In Wales, however, there are a number 

 of districts which it only visits rarely, such as west Pem- 

 brokeshire, the northern parts of Denbigh, Flint and Merioneth, 

 and Anglesey and Carnarvon. In the south-western parts of 

 Scotland, as well as in the Clyde and Forth areas and in 

 Perthshire, it is apparently fairly common, but does not breed 

 north of these limits. On migration it passes the Outer 

 Hebrides, St. Kilda, Sule Skerry, the Shetlands, Orkneys 

 and Fair Isle. To Ireland it is a regular but local visitor, 

 breeding in Tipperary, Eoscommon, Sligo, Fermanagh, Cavan, 

 Waterford, Cork, Wexford, Queen's County, Monaghan, Down, 

 and Antrim. 



Throughout Spain and Portugal, France, Belgium and 

 Holland it is generally distributed, but in Switzerland not 



2 



