136 
SAXICOLIN^. SAXICOLA. 
brownisli-red, the throat yellowish-grey, the breast dull brown- 
ish-red, a white spot on the wings, and the upper tail-coverts 
yellowish-red. Young with the upper parts dusky, streaked 
with pale yellowish-red, the lower dull yellowish-brown, the 
fore neck mottled with dusky, and some of the inner secon- 
dary coverts white. Considerable diversity is produced by 
the abrasion of the margins of the feathers, in summer. 
Male, 5J, 9, 2if, Female, 5J, 9. 
Although it appears that many individuals of the species 
leave us in autumn, it is to be found both in England and Scot- 
land in winter. It is generally dispersed in summer, although 
nowhere abundant, resorting to heaths and hill pastures over- 
grown with furze, juniper, and other low shrubs. Its favourite 
station is the top twig of a bush, whence it sallies forth in 
pursuit of insects. It flits about by short starts, with a direct 
flight, or alighting jerks its body and tail, and utters at intervals 
a note resembling the syllables snack, chack, or chit. The nest, 
which is placed on the ground among shrubs, is bulky, com- 
posed of grass and moss, and lined with finer straw’s, fibrous 
roots, hair and wool. The eggs, five or six, are light greenish- 
blue, marked towards the larger end with pale brown dots, 
their length eight- twelfths and a half, their breadth nearly 
seven-twelfths. Although commonly named Stonechat, this 
bird is not especially addicted to frequenting stony places; but 
it may sometimes be found in such as are interspersed with 
shrubs and briars. 
Stonechat. Stopesmich. Stonechatter. Blacky-top. 
Motacilla Bubicola, Linn. Syst. Nat. i. 332. — SaxicolaBu- 
bicola, Temm. Man. d’Ornith. i. 246. — Fruticicola, Black- 
headed Bushchat, MacGillivray, Brit, Birds, ii. 279. 
GENUS XLI. SAXICOLA. STONECHAT. 
Bill of moderate length, straight, slender, depressed at the 
base, compressed toward the end ; upper mandible with its 
dorsal line slightly declinate and nearly straight, the ridge 
narrow at the base, and continuing rather sharp to the end, 
the notches obsolete, the tip declinate, narrow, and rather 
blunt ; lower mandible with the angle moderate, the dorsal 
line nearly straight, the edges inflected, the tip narrowed to 
a blunt point ; the gape-line straight. Mouth rather wide ; 
tongue of moderate length, sagittate, emarginate, and papil- 
late at the base, narrow, concave above, bristly on the edges, 
