262 
allen’s naturalist’s library. 
the other Thrushes and Blackbirds, although, in their distress, 
they become very tame, and we remember a little flock ot 
eleven birds coming to the kitchen-door of our house at 
Chiswick a few winters ago, for several days in succession. 
Several of them were caught, with their breast-bones nearly 
through their skin, but all efforts to keep them alive failed. 
The bird seems to be less able to accommodate itself to a diet 
of berries than the Mistle-Thrush and the Fieldfare, though 
we have known them, when hard-pressed, to feed on holly- and 
ivy-berries. 
In its breeding haunts the Redwing is a very interesting 
bird, and though not nesting in colonies, it is generally to be 
found along with the Fieldfares, which do breed in numbers 
together. The nest is generally placed on a small fir-tree, close 
to the stem and not far from the ground ; sometimes it is 
placed actually on the latter, as is always the case in the 
Siberian “ tundra ” beyond the limit of forest-growth. In the 
latter locality it breeds as late as the middle of July, but 
further south generally early in June. 
Nest. — This, according to Mr. Seebohm, passes through 
three stages of construction, like that of all Thrushes. 1 1 e 
says: “The birds form a loose nest of moss, dry grass, and a 
few fine twigs intertwined, the better to bind the materials to- 
gether. This structure is then lined and plastered with mud 
or clay, and finally a thick lining is made of fine dry grass, and 
sometimes a few rootlets. It is neatly made, and somewhat 
resembles the nest of the Ring-Ouzel, though it is smaller and 
perhaps more firmly put together. 
Eggs. — From four to six in number. These are easily dis- 
tinguished by their small size. Axis, o‘95-i'o5 inch; diam., 
o’7-o' 8. The ground-colour is bluish-green, but is much con- 
cealed by the clouding of the reddish markings which cover 
nearly the whole of the egg. Occasionally the spots and 
blotches are larger, and the eggs then resemble those of a 
small Blackbird. Some eggs have such a uniform appearance 
as to appear almost entirely olive, while there is also an 
appearance of pencilled lines at the larger end. 
