of the bays of Poole Harbour on the 31st of

| i hile walki round one
d specimen, in full plumage while walking a
aa a allowed me to approach within ten feet

; : ean
March 1861. It was exceedingly tame, evinced little or no fear, @ on. oe
of it. It appeared to have just arrived from the Continent, and was busily engaged in catching insects. Its

back was a light silvery grey, and its throat and the back of its head were as black as jet. I have no doubt that,

at this time of the year, examples frequently occur along all parts of our southern coast; but ey must be
f their course during their migration, or as individuals that are passing over our
That the 1. alba has been frequently seen in other parts of England and Scot-
orded instances of its occurrence ; but these countries are
he bird in a state of nature, and yet do not

alor

regarded as birds blown out o

islands to the distant north.
land I am well aware ; for we have numerous rec

If any of my readers should wish to see t !
ay, or the sunny clime of Italy, their may gratify their

imilar to those frequented

not its natural home.
care to make a journey to the rugged shores of Norw
There they will meet with it m all situations s

desire by visiting France or Holland.
r in habits or economy; but it

ll-known Pied Wagtail, from which it differs but little, eithe
n, and a little less sprightly in its actions. It will

e been fully detailed in my account of
s constitute its principal food ;

here by our we
always appeared to me to be somewhat tamer in dispositior
scarcely be necessary for me to describe these minutely; for they hav

M. Yorelli. Ynsects and their larvae, small worms, and minute shelled mollusk

and watercourses, gardens, and homesteads are the places of its resort. Every village on the Continent
s during summer ; and with every flock of sheep,

of Europe has the accompaniment of one, two, or more pair

or herd of cattle, the bird may also be seen. In spring it arrives singly, or in pairs; in autumn it departs
southward in flocks, or flights of tens or even hundreds, for a more genial climate, where insect life is abun-
dant, and where they remain until the return of spring, when they instinctively retrace their steps to the old
quarters where they have bred, and the young to the neighbourhood of the sites in which they have been
reared.

The nest is constructed of materials similar to those“used by the JZ. Yarrelli; it is deposited sometimes
on the ground in meadows, or on a ditch-bank, in the hole of a wall, in the crevices of rocks, the holes of trees,
and is frequently fixed in the side of a wood-stack, but always near water. A nest sent to Mr. Hewitson,
which was said to be of this species, and had been taken from a reed-stack on the fen near Whittlesea Mere,
was ill-constructed, and composed of a large quantity of very coarse grass and roots, lined with wool and
hair mixed together; while a nest from Holland was much more symmetrical, was outwardly composed of
the stalks of plants, dry grasses, bits of moss, and a large quantity of fine roots, followed inwardly by wool,
and then thickly lined with hair; the central cavity large.

The eggs are four or five in number, of a greyish white, thickly freckled with minute spots and streaks of

 

grey or brown. Mr. Yarrell describes them as nine lines in length, and seven in breadth; bat Mr. Hewitson
says that the eggs of both MZ. Yarredh and M. alba differ much in size, some being one-third less than others.

The Plate represents both sexes in the summer plumage, and of the natural size. The pretty British plant
accompanying them, which was kindly sent to me by the Rev. H. Harper Crewe, is the Pyrola minor, and the
Butterfly is the Common Peacock (Vanessa Jo).