132 
SYLVJADiE. 
INSESSORES. SYL VIA DM. 
DENTIROSTRES. 
LESSER WHITETHROAT. 
Sylvia Curruca. 
PLATE XXXV. FIG. IV. 
The nest of the Lesser Whitethroat is found in situa¬ 
tions similar to that of the common whitethroat; it re¬ 
sembles closely those of the three preceding species, and 
differs from them only in being constructed of rather 
finer materials; it is formed outwardly of umbelliferous 
plants, bound together with spiders’ webs, pieces of 
hemp, or any such like material mixed, rarely, with bits 
of moss ; the lining contains a few roots, but consists 
chiefly of the flowering heads of fine grasses, deprived 
of their seed, in lieu of the stronger stalks of grass of 
which the nests of the other species are composed. The 
eggs bear no resemblance to those of the common white- 
throat, but are a good deal like some varieties of those 
of the blackcap ; they vary little except in size, and in 
all the specimens I have seen, and they have been many, 
have the light ground-colour and clearly-defined mark¬ 
ings of the Plate, and are not, like those of the other 
species, suffused over the surface with uncertain colour¬ 
ing : they are four or five in number, and are usually 
undergoing incubation about the middle of May. 
