THE WAGTAILS. 
101 
southern migration of the Russian birds would be along the 
line of Eastern Africa. 
Habits — The present bird is more of a “Field” Wagtail than 
any of the foregoing species, and on its arrival in spring, often 
as early as March, it frequents the land by the sea-shore, as- 
sembling in the pastures in small flocks, and attracting attention 
by its brilliant yellow plumage, which rivals that of a Canary. 
For some time after its arrival inland the flocks keep together in 
the pastures, before they break up into pairs for the nesting 
season. In the autumn these Y ellow Wagtails also assemble in 
flocks in the pasture lands near the sea-shore, feeding generally 
round the cattle, and catching the .insects disturbed by the 
latter, in the usual graceful manner of Wagtails. At night they 
retire to roost in the neighbouring reed beds in large numbers. 
Nest. — On the ground, well-concealed, built under a turf or 
stone, sometimes. in a bank. It is composed of rootlets or dry 
grass, and Mr. Cullingford informed Mr. Seebohm that the 
materials varied greatly, the lining consisting sometimes of hair, 
at other times of feathers or roots. 
Eggs. — Four to six in number. They vary extremely in colour 
and markings. Some are uniform pale olive-brown, some 
darker olive, while others are nearly uniform pinkish-brown. 
Another type resembles the greenish-olive egg of the Sedge- 
Warbler, and even has an occasional hair-line of black, as is so 
often seen in the eggs of that bird. Other eggs of the Yellow 
Wagtail are like those of the Reed Warbler, having a greenish- 
white ground mottled all over with greenish-brown and under- 
lying markings of grey. Some of the eggs with the ground- 
colour greenish-white have the spots collected round the larger 
end so as to form a ring. Axis, o‘7-o - 6 inch ; diam. o'55-o - 6. 
THE BLUE-HEADED WAGTAIL. MOTACILLA FLAVA. 
Motaalla flava , Linn., S. N., i., p. 33a (1766); Newt. ed. 
Yarr., i., p. 558 (1874 ) ; Dresser, B. Eur., iii., p. 261, 
pi. 129 (1875); B. O. U. List. Br. B., p. 31 (1883); 
Seeb., Br. B., ii., p. 208 (1884); Sharpe, Cat. B. Brit. 
Mus., x., p. 516, pi. vi., figs. 3, 5 (1885); Lilford, Col 
Fig. Br. B., pt. vi. (1888) ; Saunders, Man.,p. 119(1889). 
Budyles flava, Macg., Br. B., ii., p. 20S (1839). 
