THE WARBLERS. 
IS? 
Note.— The Lesser Whitethroat is, as its name implies, a smaller bird 
than the Common Whitethroat, though not to any remarkable extent, tor 
the wing in the smaller species measures 2 ‘45 to 2'65 inches, while m 
A', svlvia it measures 2-5 to 2-9, so that large examples of the former 
exceed in length of wing small examples of the latter. The Lesser \\ hite- 
throat belongs to the group of Warblers, which have the (irst, or bastard- 
primary, longer than the primary-coverts, thus differing from the ordinary 
Whitethroat and Garden Warbler, but agreeing in this respect with the 
Blackcap and Orphean Warbler. The wing, however, is less than three 
inches in length, and the grey head likewise distinguishes the Lesser \\ bite- 
throat from the above-mentioned species. 
Range in Great Britain.— Not so universally distributed as the 
Whitethroat, though it is found over the southern and midland 
counties of’ England, becoming gradually rarer towards the 
north and west. " In Durham, Northumberland, and Cumber- 
land it is scarce, and according to notes published by Mr. 
Howard Saunders in his “ Manual ” from the pen of Mr. Robert 
Service, it is “seldom met with in Kirkcudbrightshire, although 
better known in Dumfriesshire and down by the borders, where 
its nest has been twice obtained ; it is said to breed sparingly 
and locally as far as Stirlingshire; but in the northern counties, 
and in the outlying islands, the evidence tends to show that 
it is at most a rare straggler.” One specimen has been recorded 
as shot in Aberdeenshire, on the 4th of November, a somewhat 
extraordinary date, but confirmed by the capture of a specimen 
near Brighton in the same month, while the late Dr. Saxby saw 
a specimen in Unst in September. Only a single occurrence 
in Ireland is known. 
Range outside the British Islands.— The present species is known 
to breed throughout the greater part of Europe, extending 
northward beyond the Arctic Circle, but not to the limit ot 
forest-growth. It is also found as for east as Asia Minor and 
Palestine, but to the eastward its place is taken by Sylvia 
a/finis from the Lower Volga and Northern Persia to Siberia 
and even North-eastern China. The winter home of the 
Lesser Whitethroat is in Africa, but it does not go so far south 
as S svlvia • it visits North-eastern and Northern Africa, and 
Mr. Howard Saunders states that it likewise winters sparingly in 
South-eastern Spain. 
Habits. - 
-These differ somewhat from those of the Common 
