two middle tail-feathers clove-brown, but the others with the
basal half bright hay, the distal half brownish-black; chin,
throat, and fore-part of the neck, ultra-marine blue, with a
large central spot of bright hay ; below the blue is a broad
black bar, then a line of white, and still lower down a hand
of bright bay—hut the last two markings vary in extent and
one or the other is not unfrequently absent; belly, flanks
and under tail-coverts dirty-white, the last sometimes tinged
with reddish-brown : legs, toes and claws, brown.
The whole length of the bird six inches. From the carpus
to the end of the third and longest quill-featlier, two inches
and seven-eighths.
Females resemble the males in their uniform colour above ;
but beneath are more variable : the chin and upper part of
the throat is greyish-white, generally with an indication of
blue 011 the sides ; lower down there is commonly a mixtuie
of blue and of bay feathers, to which succeeds a band of blue
mixed with black, and then some feathers tinged with bay.
A female, however, killed from the nest in Norway, and now
in Mr. Alston’s collection, has no appearance whatever of
either blue or bay 011 the throat, but has a broad dusky hand
across the upper part of the breast. The belly in all cases
is whitish. Some old females are said to have the blue and
bay almost equal in colour to that of the males.
The young in their first feathers resemble the young of
the Redbreast, but the throat is white, tinged more or less
with bay, and they have the characteristic tail of the adult.
Young males after their first moult somewhat resemble
adult females and seem to be equally variable, but the wing
feathers have broad tips or edgings of yellowish-brown.
PA MURES. SYLV1IDJF.,
R u t i c i l l a p h c e n ic u k u s (Linnseus*).
T H E R E D S TA R T .
Phoenicura ruticilla f.
T h e R e d s t a k t or Firetail is a summer visitor that comes
to this country from the south. I t is not very numerous, and
in some localities is rather rare. I t makes its appearance in
the southern counties of England generally about the second
week in April, and arrives in the neighbourhood of Carlisle
by the third week, returning southward towards the end of
August; but the character of the season exercises great influence
in determining the time of the appearance of this bird,
as well as some others, their movements being generally better
indicated by the state of vegetation and temperature than by
the almanack.
I 11 some particulars the Redstart resembles the Bluethroat
and the Redbreast. I t inhabits the skirts of forests, lanes,
* Motacilla phoenicurus, Linnseus, Syst. Nat. Ed. 12, i. p. 335 (1766).
f “ Swainson.” Selby, 111. Orn. Ed. 2, i. p. 191 (1833)?
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