WHIN-CHAT WARBLER. 



707 



patch of white, and another smaller near the bas- 

 tard wing : throat and breast light rust-colour ; 

 sides the same, but not so bright : belly and under 

 tail-coverts white, tinged with ferruginous: tail 

 short, the feathers white for two-thirds from the 

 base; the rest blackish, except the middle feathers, 

 which are wholly of the latter colour : legs black. 

 The colours of the female are paler; the white 

 streak over the eye, and the spots on the wings, 

 are much less conspicuous; and the cheeks, in- 

 stead of being black, are like the rest of the head. 



This bird appears with us about the middle of 

 April : its manners are similar to those of the 

 Stone-chat ; but, unlike that bird, it leaves us in 

 the winter, at least that is the case with some 

 counties : in Kent it is seen all the year : it fi'e- 

 quents furzy places, where it breeds : its nest is 

 artfully concealed on the ground ; it is constructed 

 of dried grass and stalks, with a little moss ex- 

 ternally, and lined with fine dried grass : its eggs 

 are six in number, entirely blue : it feeds on 

 worms and insects, and, like the Flycatcher, it 

 will sit upon the upper sprig of a furze or bush, 

 dart after the flies, and return to the same place 

 again : in the autumn this species grows very fat, 

 and is said to be as great a delicacy as the Ortolan. 



This is not so common as the Stone-chat ; but 

 it occurs,though sparingly,in mostparts ofEurope: 

 it is most common with us in the eastern parts. 



