it is believed, may be distinguished even in their earliest
plumage, while the two Wagtails are indistinguishable in
their youth. On the other hand some mature examples of
Falco islandus and F. candicans are found presenting an
approach to each other, whereas the adult Pied Wagtail—-
especially the cock in summer-plumage—always seems to
differ conspicuously from the adult White Wagtail at the
same season. The difference however is but in colour, for
none in proportions, shape or structure can be satisfactorily
made out.
The Pied Wagtail, though a very common bird, is
deservedly admired for the elegance of its form, as well as
for the activity and airy lightness exhibited in all its actions.
I t is ever in motion, running with facility by a rapid succession
of steps in pursuit of its insect food, moving from place
to place by short undulating flights, uttering a cheerful chirping
note while on the wing, alighting again on the ground,
a roof or a wall, with a sylph-like buoyancy, and a graceful
fanning motion of the tail, from which it derives its name.
The song of the cock is loud and joyous, hut not very often
uttered. He is always among the first of small birds to
observe the danger threatened hy a hawk or cat, and in the
former case generally leads the attack on the enemy, rising
high in air and pursuing the intruder for a considerable
distance. The Pied Wagtail but seldom perches on a tree
or bush. I t frequents the vicinity of ponds and streams,
moist pastures or grassy lawns, and may be frequently seen
wading m shallow water, seeking for various aquatic insects,
or their larvae. I f confined in a suitable place it will even
take larger prey, for Mr. Rayner, of Uxbridge, noticed,
during the summer and autumn of 1837, that several Wagtails,
of this and the Yellow species, presently to be described,
were very expert in catching and feeding on minnows
which were in a fountain in the centre of his aviary. The
birds would “ hover over the water,” he adds, “ and, as they
skim the surface, catch the minnow as it approaches the top
of the water in the most dexterous manner, and I was much
surprised at the wariness and cunning of some Blackbirds
and Thrushes in watching the Wagtails catch the minnows,
and immediately seizing the prize for their own dinner.”
In the Fish-House of the Zoological Society a pair of Pied
Wagtails in two successive summers hred and reared their
young in captivity.
The nest is huilt of moss, dead grass and fibrous roots,
lined with hair and a few feathers. I t is generally placed on
the side of a bank or of a wall, overgrown with ivy or
against which a tree is trained; while the thatch of a building,
a fuel-stack, a liay-rick or a convenient nook among
rocks or large stones, will often afford it the shelter of which
the bird is almost always desirous. Sometimes, however,
all such precaution is disregarded, and several instances
are known of its courting human society, and one in particular
has been recorded by Jesse, where the nest was
placed near the wheel of a lathe in a hrazier’s workshop at
Taunton, amid loud and incessant noise. The eggs are four
or five in number; of a frencli-white, finely speckled with
asli-colour and occasionally blotched with dull olive. They
measure from -86 to -78 by from -62 to '51 in.
When the young are able to follow the parents, the little
family may be seen in meadows very busy about the feet of
the cattle while grazing, availing themselves, as White
observes, of the flies that settle on their legs, and probably
feeding also on the worms and larvae that are roused by the
trampling of their feet.
Our Pied Wagtail is exceedingly common in all parts of
the United Kingdom, reaching even St. Kilda and Unst.
In all but the extreme northern parts it is, on the whole,
resident throughout the year ; but individually it is probably
a thorough migrant, that is to say, each bird seems to move
southward in winter, so that at that season the northern
limits of its range are deserted, while the population of its
southern limits seek quarters beyond sea, their place being
supplied by birds bred further to the north. In spring this
shifting movement is reversed. Mr. Bordeaux remarks that
the increased cultivation of turnips in Lincolnshire has
induced this species to become a winter-resident there, whieh