THE YOUNG NATUEALIST. 



37 



PELOPHILA. 

 P. lorealis is the only British species, and 

 is very scarce, the localities given by Mr. 

 Dawson (" Geod. Brit.," p 49,) being Loch 

 Neagh and Killarney in Ireland, and the 

 Orkney Islands and West of Scotland. 

 LEISTUS. 

 (a) . — Colour bright blue . . . , sjnniha.' bis 

 and montanns, the former of which has 

 the thorax blue with the very extreme 

 margin often reddish ; the latter has 

 the thorax much narrower behind and 

 the sides of the thorax distinctly red. 



f^*,^.— Colour blue-black fulvlhavUs. 



(c). — Colour reddish yellow, .ferrugineus 

 and rufescem. Ferrugineus is entirely 

 reddish yellow, while rufescens has the 

 head and the apex of the elytra dusky 

 or black. 



All the species of this genus, except the 

 second (montanus), seem to be fairly cooi- 

 'mon, although rufescens appears rather 

 local, Montamis is a species which occurs, 

 as its name implies, in mountainous regions 

 ; in Wales, north of England, and Scotland, 

 but it only occurs very rarely. 



BRITISH BIRDS, THEIR 

 NESTS AND EGGS. 



By S. L. MosLEY. 

 34. STONECHAT. 



Sylvia mhicola, Linn. 

 RuBicoLA. — Rubus (L.) = the Bramble; 

 colo (L.) to frequent. 



Size. —Length, 5^ in. ; expanse of wings ; 

 gin. 



Plumage.— The adult male in the 

 summer dress has the bill black ; eyes dark 

 brown. The whole of the head is black ; 

 ■back and wings brown, each feather darker 

 in the centre. Tertiary wing coverts white ; 



I rump white; tail sooty black. On each 

 side of the neck is a white patch. Breast 

 rich chestnut brown, shading off to whitish 

 at the vent ; legs black (fig. i). 



In Winter the plumage is mostly dark 

 brown, only the white portions remaining 

 unchanged. The head is brown, owing to 

 the broad brown margins to the black 

 feathers. 



The Female is without the black head, 

 and the white portions are less conspicuous. 

 Nearly all the feathers are brown, darker 

 in the centre and lighter at the edges. In 

 very old birds the throat and head grow 

 darker and the breast assumes a chestnut 

 tint (fig. 2). 



Immature Males resemble the adult 

 females. 



The Young in the nest plumage are grey- 

 ish or greenish brown colour, each feather 

 on the upper parts tipped with yellowish 

 white ; under parts lighter (fig. 3). 



Varieties. — The only varieties I have 

 seen of this species are in Mr. Bond's col- 

 lection ; one (fig. 4) killed in Surrey is 

 cream-coloured, and another is cream- 

 colour with white tail and pinions, killed 

 by himself in the Isle of Wight. 



Note. — The note of this bird is a 

 "chack" or "chat" uttered from the top 

 of a furze bush or hedge. It has also a 

 song which is sometimes used while on the 

 wing. 



Flight. — The flight of this species is 

 short jumping flits from one bush to an- 

 other. 



Migration.— The stonechat arrives 

 in this country about the end of March, and 

 and departs again at the end of September, 

 but some remain through the winter. 



Food. — Small insects of all kinds and 

 worms. They may sometimes be seen pur- 

 suing flies after the manner of the flycatchers 

 from the top of a bush. 



Habitat. — in Britain this bird is found 

 in many parts, though somewhat local and 

 never abundant. It is partial to rough, 



