BIRDS 9. Stonechat. Pratincola rubicola (Linn.) Locally, Furze-chuck. A resident, though more numerous in sum- mer, and only nesting on furze commons. It breeds twice in the year, building a nest so well concealed in the thickest part of a furze bush that its discovery is almost impossible unless the bird is seen to go to it or suddenly flushed from it. 10. Redstart. RuticUla phanicurus {LAnn.) Locally, Fire-tail or Red-tail. This pretty species is well known as a summer migrant throughout the county. 1 1 . Black Redstart. Ruticilla titys (Scopoli) Though a regular winter migrant to some parts of England, in Suffolk this bird is a decidedly rare winter visitant, usually found near the coast. If a redstart is seen in the eastern counties after September, it is pretty certain to be one of this species. 12. Red-spotted Bluethroat. Cyanecula suecica (Linn.) A very rare spring and autumn visitant, of which Dr. Babington mentions the occur- rence of seven specimens, and no more seem to have been recorded. The bluethroat is unlikely to be found except near the coast, and in the plain plumage of the first year might easily be overlooked. 13. Redbreast. Erithacus ruhecula (Linn.) The title ' robin ' is so often applied to this bird that it can hardly be given as a local name. Though a common resident, there are numerous records of its migrations on the east coast and elsewhere, even on the Shetland Islands. Wherever the custom of feeding birds in the winter is practised the robin is always well to the front, and often comes so late in the afternoon that his colour- ing cannot be seen. In April, 1903, a pair hatched off in a garden at Bury, of which the cock would take meal-worms from the hand and carry them to the young brood. An old kettle with the lid removed and placed on its side in a bush or in ivy on a wall is a favourite nesting place. Occasionally a clutch of per- fectly white eggs is found, and the second nest of the robin is in Suffolk frequently selected by the cuckoo for the reception of its egg. 14. Nightingale. Daulias lusc'tnia (Linn.) About the middle of April this well known summer migrant arrives in Suffolk in large numbers, and those who know it well by sight often recognize it before it makes its presence known by its song. Its nest — of which oak leaves always form a part — and eggs are both unlike those of any other bird nesting in Great Britain, though the eggs vary a good deal. Perhaps a circle with a ten mile radius and the Norman tower at Bury for its centre would contain as many nightingales in May as any district of equal area in this country, and they indirectly enjoy the benefit of the protection of the gamekeeper, who likes his woods ' kept quiet ' in the breeding time. Only one brood is reared in the season, and as soon as the young are hatched the song of the cock ceases, so when it is heard after the first week in June it is usually due to the fact that the first nest has been taken or de- stroyed. 15. Whitethroat. Sylvia cinerea (Bechstein) Locally, Hay-jack. This lively little summer migrant is com- mon everywhere, and its nest, usually built in what is known in Suffolk as the ' brew ' of a ditch, is often disclosed by the bird darting out at the feet of any one passing by. 16 Sylvii 'via curruca Lesser Whitethroat. (Linn.) A much less abundant summer migrant than its larger congener, building a very small neat nest in hedges, generally two or three feet from the ground. 17. Blackcap. Sylvia atricapilla (Linn.) A summer migrant whose song is only in- ferior to that of the nightingale. The fact of the cock being often seen on the nest has sometimes given rise to the mistaken idea that both sexes are alike, whereas the ' cap ' of the hen is reddish brown. 18. Garden- Warbler. Sylvia hortensis (Bech- stein) Locally, Hay-jack. This summer migrant shares the above local name with the whitethroat from the dry grass used in the building of their nests. Its eggs often much resemble those of the blackcap, but the garden-warbler is a much later breeder, and the nest is larger, while the eggs never show any trace of the beautiful red tint sometimes seen in a clutch of black- cap's eggs. 19. Dartford Warbler. Sylvia undata (Bod- daert) The discovery of the breeding of the Dart- ford warbler in Suffolk is due to the late Sir Edward Newton, whose observations arc re- -orded in the Birds of Norfolk (iii. 387). It 181
