53 
Perching Birds. 
The Whitethroat is a shy little bird and creeps about in search of its insect food 
in the thick hedges, especially those encumbered with a side-growth of nettles and 
brambles. Occasionally tbe male bird mounts into the air, utters a pretty little song 
and descends with a quivering flight to its former place of retreat. After their first 
arrival in spring, the YVhitethroats may be noticed in the gardens and orchards, 
where they often appear on the tops of the hedges with the feathers of the crown and 
throat distended, making their heads look double their actual size, and they will often 
come so close that their pale-coloured little eye can be seen distinctly. 
The Whitethroat is called ‘ Nettle Creeper ’ and ‘ Hay Chat ’ in different districts 
of England, and is found everywhere in summer, but becomes rarer in the North of 
Scotland, where it is not known to breed. It is generally distributed throughout 
Europe in summer and winters in Africa. The nest is made of grass-stems and is 
so slightly constructed that it can be seen through. The eggs are from four to six 
in number, the ground colour being white, spotted 
with olive-brown and violet-grey. 
A single occurrence of 
THE SUB-ALPINE ^ little Warble r 
WARBLER. , , , . „ . . 
. ... , has been noted in Britain, 
(Sylvia sub-alpina.) 
a specimen having been 
procured on S. Kilda, of all places, on the 13th of 
June, 1894, by Mr. J. S. Elliot, who thought that 
it was a Dartford Warbler at the time he captured 
it. The species inhabits the Mediterranean 
countries, and is easily distinguished from the 
Whitethroats by its chestnut chin and breast. In 
habits it much resembles the last-named birds. 
As its name implies, this 
is a smaller bird than the 
common Whitethroat, and has the bastard-primary longer than 
the primary-coverts. It is pale ashy-brown, with a lighter slaty- 
grey crown, contrasting with the back; the under surface is pure white, with a tint of 
pink on the fore-neck and breast, less distinct on the sides of the body. It is a little 
browner in winter and theyoung birds are washed with brown below, with a great deal of 
white on the outer tail-feather, which has an oblique black mark across the inner web. 
The present species is a summer visitor to Great Britain, but does not nest in 
Ireland and only sparingly in the south of Scotland, It breeds throughout Central 
and Western Europe, and winters in the Mediterranean countries and Northern 
Africa. In habits it is a very shy bird, and seeks for its food in hedgerows, where 
the foliage is dense, but it is also sometimes found in trees, engaged in searching the 
leaves diligently for insects. Like the common Whitethroat and other Warblers, it 
utters a scolding ‘ churr,’ when disturbed, or when its nest is approached. The latter 
THE LESSER 
WHITETHROAT. 
(Sylvia curruca.) 
The Sub-Alpine Warbler. 
