NIGHT SONGSTERS. 
417 
the air and the freedom of the sky from clouds. 
Others on the contrary are habitual night songsters, 
or at least, though not quite constant or in some 
measure capricious in the matter, it may be con¬ 
sidered as a characteristic of the species taken as a 
whole. First on the list naturally ranks the Night¬ 
ingale, notorious the world through for the exceeding 
sweetness and plaintiveness of his notes. He is 
frequently however silent on the choicest and most 
serene nights, but sings much by day also, and thus 
apparently divides his time betwixt sleeping and 
activity, allowing short periods in general to each. 
Next ranks the melodious Woodlark, often mis¬ 
taken for the Nightingale. In summer nights he is 
suspended in the welkin, or perched on some tall 
tree pouring out his rich notes. He sings also at 
night occasionally in the midst of winter. Like the 
Nightingale he is not constant to night singing, but 
often omits it on the most inviting nights of sum¬ 
mer. The Sedge Bird next claims notice, not from 
sweetness of voice but from his night song being so 
commonly noticed. It amounts more to a gabble 
resembling the notes of various small birds than to 
a true song, or melodious effusion. It is only for a 
short portion of its stay with us, namely the height 
of the breeding season, that this night w r arble oc¬ 
curs. The Reed Wren, Dipper, Reed Bunting, and 
Whinchat are likewise habitual night songsters, 
though decidedly less attractive than the afore¬ 
mentioned, and from their several localities less 
generally noticed. On March 12th, 1836, 1 heard 
the Whinchat sing very blithly late in the evening, 
and when quite dark. The Redbreast, Skylark, and 
Redstart are only occasionally known to sing at 
night, induced probably by such causes as I have 
above named. The Wren, Grasshopper Warbler, 
Hedge Sparrow, Thrush, Blackbird, and I believe 
one or two other sorts have also been detected 
