The Natural History of Cage Birds Part 38

These two birds have been, and are, frequently confounded, and with them the wood wren of this work; but this last is at once distinguished by the under tail-coverts being a pure white, and the plumage of a more lively green on the upper parts than either of the others. The nest, eggs, and notes, will be found also different by consulting and comparing the history of each. This is the first of all the migrative warblers (_Sylviadae_) in its annual visit, and is, perhaps, the only one that has occasionally been observed with us during the winter, and that only in the milder parts of England. It is generally heard on or before the first of April repeating its song, if that may be so called which consists only of four notes, which seem to express the words _chip, chop, cherry, churry_, four or five times successively. It is a busy, restless bird, always active among the trees and bushes in search of insects. From its early cry in our neighbourhood, we long suspected it would be found that this hardy little bird did not wholly quit us, and in this opinion we were confirmed by seeing one in the garden about Christmas, 1806. In the following January, we observed two of these little creatures busied in catching the small insects which a bright day had roused in great abundance about some fir trees, by springing upon them from the ends of the branches, one of which we succeeded in shooting. Another, which we killed in 1808, on the same spot, while feeding upon a small species of _culex_, weighed one drachm thirty-three grains; this will easily account for the very early cry of this bird in the spring, as it is highly probable that they remain with us the whole year, but are wholly silent in the winter. The earliest we ever heard was on the 14th of March, 1804, when vegetation was unusually early.

The nest of this species is oval, with a small hole near the top, composed externally of dry leaves, and then coa.r.s.e dry gra.s.s, and lined with feathers; and is generally placed on or near the ground, frequently on a ditch bank, in a tuft of gra.s.s or low bush. The eggs are six in number, white, speckled with purplish red at the larger end only, with here and there a single speck on the sides.

It seems to be the hardiest and most generally diffused of all our summer visitants; and is found in all parts of the kingdom where wood or hedges afford it shelter and food. Its note is heard long after the hay-bird is silent. Dr. Latham says this is called in Dorsetshire the hay-bird; but as we are inclined to believe the three species before mentioned have been confounded, it is more probable that our hay-bird should obtain that name, as its nest is composed of that material.

Mr. Sweet tells us, "it is readily taken in a trap baited with small caterpillars. They soon get familiar in confinement; when first caught, they should, if possible, be put with other birds, and they will readily take to feed on bruised hemp-seed and bread, and on bread and milk, which must at first be stuck full of small insects, or a quant.i.ty of aphides may be shaken off a branch upon it; when they have once tasted it they will be very fond of it. One that I caught took to eat it directly, and became so familiar, that in three or four days it would take a fly out of the hand. It also learnt to drink milk out of a tea-spoon, of which it was so fond, that it would fly after it all round the room, and perch on the hand that held it, without showing the least symptoms of fear. It would also fly up to the ceiling, and bring down a fly in its mouth every time. At last it got so very tame, that it would sit on my knee by the fire and sleep; and when the windows were open, it would never attempt, nor seemed to have the least inclination, to fly out; so that I at last ventured to entice it out in the garden, to see whether it would return. I with difficulty enticed it out at the door with a spoon of milk; it returned twice to the room; the third time it ventured into a little tree; it then fled and perched on my hand, and drank milk out of the spoon; from thence it flew to the ground on some chickweed, in which it washed itself, and got into a holly-bush to dry.

After getting among the leaves, I could see no more of it, but heard it call several times. I suppose after it got quite dry that it left the country directly, as I could never see or hear it afterwards, and it was then the end of November, when all the others had left for some time[105]."

THE RUFOUS CHIFF-CHAFF.

Sylvia rufa, BECHSTEIN; La Fauvette rousse, BUFFON; Der Weidenzeisig, BECHSTEIN.

This and the gold-crested wren are the smallest of our European birds.

The full-grown male has the bill a third of an inch in length, very narrow, and pointed; of a blackish brown, except at the edges and within, where it is yellow. The iris is dusky brown. From the base of the bill on each side there runs a narrow yellowish white streak, and there is another straight streak of a dusky yellow over the eye. The sides of the head are of a very clear brown. The upper part of the head, neck, and back, are greyish brown, with a slight tinge of olive. The throat is greyish white; the breast light grey, with a very pale tinge of red, or rather rust brown. The belly is greyish white, with faint yellowish streaks.

The females and the young males, before the first moult, have the upper parts of a clear olive green, and the under parts reddish white.

I have never met with the nest; but it is said to be built on the ground amongst fallen leaves, domed, with a side entrance, and lined with feathers. The eggs are said to be from four to seven, white, with reddish black dots, most crowded at the larger end.

The young branchers may be caught in autumn by means of the owl, with limed twigs, and fed on ant's eggs and small meal-worms. They will also soon take to bread and milk, or German paste, and become exceedingly tame, but are very impatient of cold.

It is most probably a native of Britain, like the preceding; but is not yet distinctly proved to be so.

THE HAY-BIRD, OR WILLOW WREN.

[Ill.u.s.tration]

Sylvia Fitis, BECHSTEIN; S. Trochilus, LATHAM; Le Bec-fin Pouillot, TEMMINCK; Der Fitis Sanger, MEYER; Der Weidenblatt, BECHSTEIN.

This species weighs about two drachms and three quarters; length five inches and a quarter. The bill is dusky above, yellowish beneath; irides hazel. The whole upper parts of the plumage are of a greenish yellow brown: the under parts are white, tinged with yellow; on the breast are a few yellow streaks; legs light brown.

This is a plentiful species in some parts; frequents wooded and enclosed situations, especially where willows abound; is frequently found with the wood wren, but does not extend so far to the west in England, as it is rarely met with in Cornwall. It comes to us early in April, and soon begins its usual song, which is short, with little variety. About the latter end of the same month, or beginning of May, it makes a nest of an oval shape, with a small opening near the top, composed of moss and dried gra.s.s, and lined with feathers. This is placed in the hollow of a ditch, or in a low bush close to the ground.

MR. SWEET'S ACCOUNT OF THE HAY-BIRD.

This is another little favourite songster, and a most deserving one it is. It visits us the latter end of March, or beginning of April, and leaves us again at the end of September, or beginning of October. On its first arrival, it enlivens our woods and groves with its lively piercing song and gay frolics, flying about from tree to tree, and catching the small gnats and flies that come in its way. It builds its nest on the ground in a thicket amongst dead leaves and moss, with a covering on the top, of the same materials as those lying all around, so that it is impossible to find it without watching one of the old ones to the nest, which in general consists of six or seven young ones. These may either be brought up from the nest, or if an old one be caught wild it is easily tamed. When first put in the cage with a tame bird, the general food, bread and milk, and eggs, should be stuck full of small flies, aphides, small caterpillars, or other small insects, in picking out which it will taste the other food, and soon take to eat it readily, and will soon become very tame in confinement. One that I caught in September was, in three days afterwards, let out of the aviary into the room to catch the flies, that were numerous at that season. After amusing itself for some time in catching flies, it began singing; and it did the same several other times when it was let out, and in a few days began to sing in its aviary. It soon became so familiar, that it would take flies out of the hand; and when out in the room, if a fly was held towards it, would fly up, and take it immediately.

Although the present species is so small a bird, it is very courageous, being generally the master of the cage, and as it is so fine a songster, and almost continually in song, no little bird can be more desirable in a cage with other birds; its note, when in full song, being so loud and shrill, that its voice is plainly heard above the nightingale's when both are in full song.

THE WOOD WREN.

[Ill.u.s.tration]

Sylvia sibilatrix, BECHSTEIN; Le Bec-fin Siffleur, TEMMINCK; Der grune Sanger, MEYER.

This bird remained long unnoticed as a distinct species, from its resemblance to the hay-bird (_Sylvia Trochilus_), with which it is still frequently confounded. It measures in length five inches and a half; bill horn-colour; upper mandible bent at the tip, and rather longer than the under; irides hazel; nostrils beset with bristles; top of the head, neck, back, and tail-coverts olive green; throat and cheeks yellow, paler on the breast; belly and vent of a most beautiful silvery white; through the eye pa.s.ses a yellow line; legs rather more than an inch long, of a horn-colour, claws paler.

MR. SWEET'S ACCOUNT OF THE WOOD WREN.

This elegant and beautiful little species ranks itself amongst my list of favourites. It visits this country the beginning of April, and leaves it in August, or the beginning of September. It is generally to be found in summer amongst tall trees in woods and plantations, where it is readily detected on its arrival, by a shrill shaking sort of note that may be heard at a great distance, and cannot be confounded with any other bird. On its first arrival it sings the greater part of the day, and continues its song, more or less, through the summer, except at the time it is engaged in feeding its young. Its nest is built on the ground in a thicket amongst moss and dead leaves, so that it is impossible to find it without watching one of the old ones to the nest, which is easily done when they have young. They may either be tamed when old, or reared from the nest, and are not difficult to be caught when young with a little bird-lime at the end of a fishing-rod, as may several other species of this interesting group.

As the present species feeds entirely upon insects when wild, the greater part of which it catches on the wing, it will be useless to give it any sort of fruit or berry; but bread and milk, bruised hemp-seed and bread, with bits of fresh lean meat cut very small and mixed up in it, will be its general food. It is also very fond of the yolk of an egg boiled hard, and crumbled small, or stirred up with the point of a knife that it may peck it out of the sh.e.l.l as it likes. Sometimes these birds are apt to get off their other food, and will live on egg several days; at such a time if a few flies could be procured for them, it would be the most likely to restore their appet.i.te.

THE GRa.s.sHOPPER BIRD.

[Ill.u.s.tration]

Locustella avicula, RAY; Sylvia locustella, LATHAM; L'Alouette locustelle, BUFFON; Der Fleuschrechensanger, MEYER.

This species is less than the white-throat; length five inches and a half; weight about three drachms and a quarter. The bill is dusky above, whitish beneath; irides light hazel. The whole upper parts of the bird are olivaceous brown; the middle of each feather dusky, except on the back of the neck, which gives it a pretty spotted appearance; the tail is much cuneiform, and the feathers somewhat pointed, which is a very marked and peculiar character in this species; the outer feather being full an inch shorter than the middle ones, and nearly rounded at the tips, the wing remarkably short, reaching very little beyond the base of the tail; legs very pale brown; claws light-horn colour; hind claw short and crooked.

In shape, the gra.s.shopper warbler very much resembles the sedge-bird; is rather inferior in size, and at once distinguished by its spotted back.

MR. SWEET'S ACCOUNT OF THE GRa.s.sHOPPER BIRD.

The present species is known amongst bird-catchers by the name of the gra.s.shopper lark, and it was originally placed amongst the larks by ornithologists, but has been very properly removed from them by later authors, as it wants the most characteristic mark of that family, namely, its long claw. It is a very rare bird in the neighbourhood of London, and I have never been able to procure but one of them, which I lost the first winter, by letting it wash too much; in confinement it requires the same sort of management as recommended for the two last species, and it will succeed very well. I am not acquainted with their song, never having lived in any neighbourhood where they visit, but I have been credibly informed that they have none but a note like the chirping of the gra.s.shopper; this may probably be the case, but I have often heard the same report of some of our finest songsters, which people had confused with very common birds, there being very few who do not confuse, under the general name of white-throats, the common fly-catcher, both white-throats, the greater pettychaps, and the blackcaps, when young; and many even confuse with these the willow wren, wood wren, and lesser pettychaps: this tribe of birds being only summer visitants, are less known than any others.

These birds are not uncommon in several parts of England; they are said to be plentiful on Malmesbury Common, Wiltshire, in summer, where they breed; they are also frequently seen in Norfolk and Suffolk, and in various other parts, where they build their nest among some high gra.s.s or sedge, in which it is so concealed that it is with difficulty found, except by watching the old birds carrying food to their young ones; or when building, they may be seen carrying materials to construct their nest.

In a wild state these birds feed entirely on insects, such as flies, moths, b.u.t.terflies, spiders, ants; and their eggs, small beetles, and numerous other sorts, so that in confinement they will frequently require insect food.

THE REED WARBLER.

[Ill.u.s.tration]

Sylvia arundinacea, LATHAM; La Fauvette des Roseaux, BUFFON; Der Teichsanger oder Sumpfsanger, BECHSTEIN.

This species has been confounded, not only with others with a greenish plumage that are a.n.a.logous, but in describing it with the reed thrush (_t.u.r.dus arundinaceus_, Linn.), and in its manner of life with the black-bonnet, or reed bunting (_Emberiza Schaeniclus_, Linn.). It is five inches in length, of which the tail measures two. The beak, seven lines long, resembles that of the arbour bird, brown above and yellowish beneath; the iris is chestnut brown; the shanks are eight lines high, and ash grey; the forehead is very long, greenish grey; the rest of the upper part of the body, including the wing-coverts, are of the same colour, tinged with olive; the rump is paler; a straw-coloured line extends above the eyes; the cheeks are olive brown; the under part of the body is yellowish white; the knees are olive grey; the anterior quill-feathers are dusky; the secondary are dark brown; all are edged with olive grey; the tail-feathers have the same colour as the quill-feathers, but with a wider olive grey border; the tail is very much rounded, and nearly wedge-formed.

There is little difference in the female. Her head is pale brown: a white line pa.s.ses across the eyes; the upper part is reddish grey, tinged with olive; the under part, except the throat, which is white, is pale grey, tinged with yellow; the quill-feathers are darker brown than the tail, with an olive grey border.

HABITATION.--When wild they are found throughout Europe, wherever rushes and reeds abound. They arrive in Germany towards the middle of April, and leave it the beginning of September. As they are very delicate, in the house they must be kept in a nightingale's cage.

FOOD.--When wild it feeds on all kinds of aquatic insects, and, when these fail, on berries. In the house, independently of nightingale's food, it requires in a cage all the insects that can be caught, as flies, water-spiders, and gnats.

BREEDING.--The nest, rather long and very ingeniously fastened to the stems of the reeds or the branches of bushes by the water side, is constructed of pieces of dried gra.s.s, of which the largest are on the outside, and the finer within; these are sometimes mixed with wool and hair. The eggs, five or six in number, are greenish white, streaked and speckled with olive green. The young ones can only be reared on ants' eggs.

MODE OF TAKING.--These birds are sometimes caught by placing lime twigs on a place cleared of the turf, and throwing meal-worms there.

ATTRACTIVE QUALITIES.--The song of the reed warbler very much resembles that of the arbour bird, but is not so full; what renders it so agreeable is, that its varied melody is heard during evening and morning twilight.

MR. SWEET'S ACCOUNT OF THE REED WARBLER.