INSESSORES. MOTACILL1DÆ.
DENTIROSTRES.
RAY’S WAGTAIL.
Motacilla fiava, Yellow Wagtail, P enn. Brit. Zool. vol. i. p. 491.
>, ,, ,, M ont. Ornith. Diet.
>> >» j. B ewick, Brit. Birds, vol. i. p.
234.
>> >> y, F lem. Brit. An. p. 74.
»> »> yy S elby, Brit. Ornith. vol. i. p.
255.
yy yy yy J enyns, Brit. Vert. p. 115.
y y y y y y G ould, Birds of Europe, pt. iii.
flaveola, Bergeronnetteflavêole, T emm. Supplt. to Man.p. 183.
Budytes Rayi, ,, ' P. M usign. Comp. List. p. 18.
T h e common Yellow Wagtail of England, first described
by our countryman and naturalist John Ray, and now proposed,
for distinction’s sake, to be called Ray’s Wagtail,*
* There are four species of Wagtails on the European Continent, all of
which are bright yellow in summer.
is a constant summer visiter to tbis country, making its appearance
about the end of March, or the beginning of April,
and leaves our southern shores in September. Like most
of our summer visiters, this species comes to us from the
south, and in its habits is very like the other Wagtails, except
that it does not appear to be, like them, so decidedly
partial to water. It frequents arable land, and inhabits fields
of peas and tares, in both of which I have found its n e st;
it also frequents open downs and sheep pastures, fields of
young green corn, and not unusually dry fallows, where,
perched on a clod of earth, or upon a stone, this bird may be
seen fanning his tail, and exhibiting his rich yellow breast to
the greatest advantage. The nest is placed on the ground,
and is generally formed of dried bents and fibrous roots,
lined with hair ; the eggs are from four to six in number, not
unlike those of the Sedge Warbler, but rather larger;
whitish in colour, mottled nearly all over with yellow brown
and ash brown; the length eight lines and a half, the breadth
six lines and a half.
The young birds are able to fly about the' end of May;
and may be seen from that time to the period of their autumnal
departure following the parent birds in search of food.
Like others of the genus, they are frequently to be seen
attending cattle and sheep while grazing, running about so
close to their feet as to appear in danger of being trodden
upon. A writer observes, “ I have seen as many as seven,
which I concluded were the parents and their offspring, running
and dodging just before the cow’s head, apparently
catching small insects. I suppose that the cattle disturbed
small flies, which are the favourite food of this bird, lodged
in the grass, and which as soon as they arose were caught by
the watchful Wagtail before they could secure their retreat
into the grass. We thus see it demonstrated how one animal
, is subservient to the well-being of another.”