BRITISH BIRDS. 
white upon it ; the upper tail coverts are yellow ; 
the tail is a little forked, the two outermoft feathers 
are white, the third black, tipped with white, the 
reft wholly black ; the legs are fliort and black ; 
the hind claws almoft as long, but more bent than 
thofe of the Lark. 
Our figure and defcription of this bird are taken 
from one which was caught in the high moory 
grounds above Shotley-Kirk, in the county of 
Northumberland. We are perfectly of opinion, 
with Mr Pennant, that this and the former are the 
fame bird in their fummer and winter drefs.* Lin- 
naeus, who muft have been well acquainted with 
this fpecies, comprifes them under one, and fays 
that they vary, not only from the feafon, but accor- 
ding to their age : It is certain that no birds of the 
fame fpecies differ from each other more than 
they ; amongft multitudes, that are frequently ta- 
ken, fcarcely two being alike. Mr Pennant lup- 
pofes, with great probability, that the fwarms 
which annually vifit the northern parts of our if- 
land arrive from Lapland and Iceland, and make 
the ifles of Ferro, Shetland, and the Orkneys, their 
refting-places during the paffage. In the winter 
of 1778—9 they came in fuch multitudes into Bir- 
fa, one of the Orkney iftes, as to cover the whole 
barony \ yet, of all the numbers, it could hardly 
% Vide Ar£tic Zoology, Number 222. 
l 4 
