: THE NATURAL HISTORY OF SELBORNE. “105 
: Birds that have somewhat of a note or song, and yet are 
hardly to be called singing birds: 
23. Gold Twren, } Its note as minute as its person ; frequents the tops 
of high oaks and firs; the smallest British bird. 
: 24. Marsh-titmouse. Haunts great woods: two harsh sharp notes. 
: 25. Small willow-wren. Sings in March, and on to September. 
| 26. Largest ditto. Sings from end of April to August. 
a7. Grassl — 5 Chirps all night, from the middle of April to the 
| (end of July. 
28. Martin. All the breeding-time: from May to September. 
= 29. Bullfinch. 
. 30. Bunting. From the end of January to July. 
. All singing birds, and those that have any pretensions to 
song, not only in Britain, but perhaps the world through, come 
__-under the Linnzan order of Passeres. 
: Birds that sing as they fly are but few: 
_ .., Skylark. Rising, suspended, and falling. 
Titlark. In its descent; also sitting on trees, and walking 
on the ground. 
Woodlark. Suspended ; in hot summer nights all night long. 
Blackbird. Sometimes from bush to bush. 
White-throat. igo when singing on the wing odd jerks and 
gesticulations. 
Swallow. In soft sunny weather. 
Wren. Sometimes from bush to bush. 
Birds that breed most early in these parts : 
——— Se a li Re ee ee ae : 
Raven. Hatches in February and March. 
Song-thrush. In March. 
Blackbird. In March. F 
; Rook. Builds the beginning of March. 
7 Woodlark. Hatches in April. 
a Ring-dove. Lays the beginning of April. 
All birds that continue in full song till after midsummer 
_ appear to me to breed more than once. 
Most kinds of birds seem to me to be wild and shy some- 
what ip proportion to their bulk ; I mean in this island, where 
they are much pursued and annoyed ; but in Ascension Island, 
by and many other desolate places, mariners have found fowls so 
“es 
