Genus B u ta l is .
6 7 . B u tal is g r i s o l a ...................................................................................................................................................V o l. $ S VI. X IX .
S po t t e d F lyca tch er.
Arrives late in the spring, spreads over the British Islands, and after breeding returns to whence it came,
the northern part o f Africa.
Genus E ry th r ost ern a .
The members o f this genus, which are but few in number, frequent Eastern Europe, India, and China.
They are extremely delicate in stru c tu re ; and it is marvellous how so frail a bird as the E . parva could have
crossed the Channel, and thus laid claim to a place in the avifauna of G reat Britain.
68. E ry th ro st ern a parva Vol. II. PI. XX.
R e d -b r e a s t e d F lyca tch er.
For the particulars respecting the capture of three examples o f this bird, I refer my readers to my account
o f the species opposite the P la te ; but I may here mention th at all were taken in Cornwall, and that they can
only be regarded as accidental visitors.
6 9 . V ireosylvia olivacea.
Red-eyed Flycatcher.
In Mr. Harting’s ‘ Handbook of British Birds ’ it is stated th at two examples o f this purely American
species were taken by a bird-catcher a t Chellaston, near Derby, in May 1859, the particulars o f which will be
found in Sir Oswald Mosley’s ‘Natural History o f Tutbury,’ page 385.
F am ily A M P E L ID jE .
Three or four species of this very singular and beautiful family are all th at are known. They chiefly
inhabit the temperate and northern regions of both the Old and New Worlds, their summer residences
often bordering the arctic circle, whence some of them migrate south a t the cold season, but only for a short
period.
Genus A m p e l is .
70. A m p e l is g a r ru lu s . . . . . . . . . . . . Vol. II. PI. XXI.
W axen C h a t t e r e r .
A native of Norway, Finland, and Russia. Is only an accidental visitor to England; and when it does
favour us with its presence, it is mostly in the winter, especially if that season happens to be severe. A
distinct species is found in Japan ; and the A . cedrorum, as we all know, frequents America.
Family SITTIDÆ.
Taking our Common Nuthatch as a typical example, and omitting the members o f the allied subgenera
Callisitta, Dendrophila, and Hypherpes, there exist about a dozen species o f this family, some, if not all,
possessing the peculiarity o f being able to run up and run down the boles of trees with equal facility. They
frequent the temperate portions o f Europe, Asia, and America.
71. S it t a cæ s ia Vol. II. PI. XXII.
N u t h a t c h .
This species is not, as has been supposed, entirely confined to Britain ; for it is also found in some of the
Danish islands and elsewhere. With us it is stationary and common all over England, but is somewhat rare
in Cornwall, very scarce in Scotland, and never found in Ireland.
Family PARIDÆ.
More than a hundred species of T its have been already named ; and there are doubtless many more
yet to be described. The countries frequented by these tree-loving birds are Europe, Asia, Japan, the
Philippines, Java, and Sumatra. Africa, also, from north to south, contains its fair quota ; nor are they
absent from America, in which country they are principally found in its northern regions. Structurally they
present much variety ; and in consequence the entire group has been divided into many genera. In the
British Islands, exclusive o f the so-called Bearded Tit, which belongs to an entirely different family, we have
six species, which constitute the typical examples o f almost as many genera. I have, however, only adopted
a portion o f them, keeping four in the genus Parus, one in Pcecile, and one in Mecistura. The chief food
o f the Tits consists o f insects and their larvæ, with occasionally the addition o f fruit. They are mostly pert
and lively birds, assuming many varied positions while searching for food among the leafy branches of trees
and shrubs.
Genus P a r u s .
™ D . . Vol. II. Pl. XXIII.
7 2 . P a ru s m a j o r ...................................................................................................................................
G r e a t T it .
Resident and common over the three kingdoms. Breeds in April and May. Youthful birds have their
cheeks stained with yellow, while in the adult the sides o f the face are white.
Generally distributed over Central Europe.
Q