Lever obtained specimens in Lancashire, which he sent under
the same name to Latham, who considered it a variety of the
“ Fauvette" of Buffon, which it certainly is not—that bird, to
judge by the figure, being the female of the Orphean Warbler
to be presently described. Singularly enough it appears to
have escaped the observation of White of Selborne : the bird
which he mentions as the “ Pettichaps ” being, from his
account of its habits, most certainly the Lesser Whitethroat.
Since that period it has been found to breed regularly in
all the counties of England, Derbyshire (where it is rare)
and Cornwall excepted. In Wales it is only known with
certainty to breed in Pembrokeshire. I t is said by Selby
to occur throughout the greater part of Scotland, particularly
where the wooded districts margin the lakes and rivers, but
Mr. Gray is disposed to think it is not commonly distributed.
Still it would appear to visit most of the counties as far
northward as Banffshire, and Dr. Saxby says he obtained
a specimen in Shetland, September 30th, 1861. In Ireland
it seems to be extremely rare, but it is recorded by Templeton
as having bred at Cranmore near Belfast in 1820, and by
Thompson as having done the like in the county Tipperary
and as frequenting gardens in Cork. Mr. Harting also says
that he has seen it in the county Wicklow, that Mr. Blake-
Knox has met with it in the county Dublin, and that Sir
Victor Brooke has found it to be common about Lough Erne,
where it breeds regularly.
This bird is found throughout the greater part of Europe,
breeding commonly in Norway as high as lat. 68° N., and
reaching the birch-woods on the mountains. In Sweden its
range seems to be limited by lat. 67° N., while in Finland
it has not been noticed further than 65° N., and there only
in one instance, as Dr. Malmgren has kindly informed the
Editor. I t is common about Archangel, but is not known
in Siberia or Central Asia. In southern Russia, particularly
on the steppes, it is abundant, and it occurs in Asia Minor
and Palestine, in which last it breeds. In some parts of
wherein “ Pettichap ” is given as the name of a bird—in this case, from the context,
obviously either the Willow-Wren or the Chiffchaff.
Greece it is said to be resident. I t is a bird of passage
through Egypt, but is not very common, and it was obtained
in Caffraria by Wahlberg, in Damaraland by Andersson,
at Aguapim by Riis, and at Abouri by Messrs. Shelly and
Buckley. I t also frequents the Algerian oases in winter.
In parts of Spain and Italy it is at some seasons very
abundant, and is the true Beccajico so much prized in the
country last named.
The adult male has the bill, which is comparatively stout
and short in this species, dark brown: irides h az el: the
eyelids white ; the head, neck, back, wings and tail of a
uniform liair-brown; the whole of the body beneath from
the chin to the lower tail-coverts, dull brownish-white,
darkest on the throat and chest, and lightest, almost white,
on the belly ; the lower wing-coverts of a delicate buff: the
legs, toes and claws, purple-brown.
The whole length rather less than six inches. From the
carpal joint to the tip of the longest primary, three inches :
the second a little longer than the fourth, and a good deal
longer than all those that succeed.
The female is very like the male, but has the lower wing-
coverts of a lighter buff.
According to Selby, the young of the year have the region
of the eyes greyish-white; head, upper part of the neck,
back, rump and wing-coverts, yellowisli-brown passing into
oil-green ; quills greenisli-grey, edged with oil-green ; cheeks
and sides of the neck yellowisli-grey; throat, breast, sides
and under tail-coverts, wine-yellow; middle of the belly,
white : legs, toes and claws, pearl-grey.
By Dr. Kaup this species has been separated from the
other Warblers, its near allies, under the generic name,
E pilais; but the characters assigned by him are quite
insufficient to justify such a step. In the formation of its
bill, however, a feature not mentioned by him, the Garden-
Warbler does undoubtedly differ from either of the White-
throats or from the two species next to be described, and
in this respect indeed it would seem to stand almost alone
among European Sylviidce.
VOL. 1. 3 H
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