THE CHAFFINCH. 
33i 
bird, thrush, and hedge-warbler are generally the first to be 
found, because the nests in which they are contained are so con- 
spicuous. But the nest of the chaffinch is never easily seen, 
and its discovery requires a special training of the eye. 
An experienced nest-hunter will always detect it, and it is 
amusing to watch the bewildered expression of a novice to whom 
a Chaffinch-nest is pointed out, and who cannot see it in spite 
of all the indications of his instructor. The bird likes to find 
the fork of a tree or bush, where several branches are thrown 
out from one spot, and so as to form a kind of cup in which the 
nest can lie. Tall hawthorns, or even sloe or crab-trees, espe- 
cially if they grow in thick hedges, are favourite trees with the 
Chaffinch, and a luxuriant and untrimmed hedgerow is always 
prolific in Chaffinch-nests. 
Within the forked branches, the bird constructs its nest, and 
does so in rather a singular manner. The chief material is wool, 
which is matted together so as to form a kind of loose felt, and 
with this felt are woven delicate mosses, spider-webs, cottony 
down, and lichens. The last-mentioned materials are stuck 
most ingeniously upon the outside of the nest, and have the 
effect of making it look exactly like a natural excrescence from 
the tree in which it is placed. 
This pretty nest is generally deep in proportion to its width, 
and is lined with hairs, arranged in a most methodical manner, 
so as to form a cup for the eggs. The hair of the cow is much 
used by the Chaffinch, which may be seen collecting its stock of 
hairs from the fields wherein cows are pastured, not plucking 
them directly from the body of the animal, but searching for 
them in the crevices of the trees and posts against which the 
cattle are accustomed to rub themselves. Mostly, the bird can 
only procure single hairs ; but when it is fortunate enough to 
find a tuft or bunch of hairs, it pulls them out, and works them 
separately into the nest, so as to ensure the needful uniformity. 
The hair of the horse is largely used by the Chaffinch, as is the 
fur of several other animals ; but in the generality of nests the 
hairs of the cow predominate. 
The texture of the nest is very strong, and, owing to the 
