OF BIRDS, 
21 T 
fore part of the neck, of throat, and the upper part of the 
back, are all black. Some of the tips of the quill feathers 
are white, which form a small white line upon the wing, 
jj and another is also formed by the white edges of some 
J of the rows of the covert feathers! the lower parts of the 
| breast and belly are both white. The tail is about three 
inches long, which is almost continually in motion, wag- 
ging up and down, from whence it is supposed to derive 
the name of wagtail; the outer feathers are chiefly white, 
the rest black. The claws are sharp-pointed, and pretty 
long; of a dusky or blackish colour. 
These birds are frequently seen about the brinks of 
rivers, ponds, and small pools of water, and also amongst 
the low grass in dewy mornings, where they feed upon 
flies, worms, beetles, and other small insects. They build 
under the eaves of houses, and in holes in the walls of 
old buildings; laying four or five eggs. 
There is another species, called the wagtail, from the 
colour of its head, neck,, and back. It is somewhat lar- 
ger than the common wagtail, owing to the great length 
of its tail. It has a dark brown bill, and over each eye 
a pale streak; the throat and chin are black, and all the 
under parts of the body are a bright yellow; the wing- 
coverts and quills are dark brown, tfie former with pale 
edges; the secondaries, which are almost as long as the 
greater quills, are white at the base; and tipped with yel- 
low on the outer edges; the middle feathers of the tail 
black, the outer ones white, and the legs are yellowish 
brown. The female builds her nest on the ground, and 
sometimes in the banks of rivulets, laying from six to 
eight eggs, of a dirty white, marked with yellow spots. 
The wagtails change their quarters in winter, from 
the north to the south of England. 
Yellow-Hammer. (PI. 35.) The yellow-hammer is 
about the size of a sparrow. Its head is of a greenish 
yellow, spotted with brown: the throat and belly are yel- 
low; the breast and sides, under the wings, mingled with 
red: the tail flesh colour. These birds build upon the 
ground, and are common in most parts of EnglancL 
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