No sooner have the Nightingales arrived in Europe than their song is to be heard almost incessantly. Some few pour forth their trilling notes throughout the long, bright night; but, for the most part, they only sing during the day, except just at the commencement of the breeding season, when the desire to please and attract their mates renders the male birds excited and restless. The nest of the Nightingale is a mere heap of dry leaves, rushes, and grass, with a lining of horsehair, cotton wool, or any similarly elastic material; occasionally twigs and straw are also employed. Naumann mentions an instance of a Nightingale building on a branch five feet from the ground, and of another that made its preparations for its little family in the centre of a heap of dry leaves that had been thrown down in a garden-shed; these are, however, exceptions to the general rule, their nests being, for the most part, placed in low bushes, upon felled trees, or in holes in the ground. The eggs, from four to six in number, have a delicate, glossy, greenish grey shell. Both parents assist in hatching their young, who are tended with great care, the male keeping a very sharp eye indeed upon his mate, lest she should endeavour to leave her charge in order to take a peep at the outer world, or even to stretch her wearied limbs. Bäszler mentions having been much amused upon one occasion, when he had scared a brooding female from her nest, by the cries of reproof and marital pecks that were forcibly employed by her indignant spouse, in order to drive back his partner to her maternal duties. Worms of various kinds, the larvæ of insects, ants, smooth-skinned caterpillars, and some species of beetles, constitute the principal food of the adult birds, and upon these the nestlings are likewise reared. During the autumn they also consume large quantities of berries. The young remain under the care of their parents until the approach of the moulting season. Almost immediately after leaving the shell the young males commence trying their voices, but give little or no indication of their future capabilities in the notes they utter during the first months of their life. It is not until the following spring that they become possessed of their full powers, at which time they seek a mate, and in her honour begin to pour forth a copious flood of sounds, as sweet and enchanting as those of the older birds. The moulting season commences about July, after which the autumn migrations commence. These journeyings are accomplished in families, or small parties, the birds flying with great rapidity to very distant countries. We ourselves have met with them occasionally in the forests of Southern Nubia and Eastern Soudan, and have observed that they appear to make themselves but little conspicuous during their absence from their native lands. About the middle of April they reappear in Europe, the males coming first, and at once seek their former haunts, announcing their welcome presence, and greeting their old home by joyous strains, that are continued without intermission for hours at a time, and even prolonged far into the night.
The HEDGE SINGERS, or TREE NIGHTINGALES (Aëdon or Agrobates), bear a strong family likeness to the True Nightingales, both in their habits and general appearance. They are met with in Southern Europe, North-western Asia, and Northern Africa. The members of this family are recognisable by their elongated body and comparatively strong beak, the upper mandible of which is very decidedly bent; the third and fourth quills of the long, broad wings are of equal length, the tail much rounded, and the tarsi low. Their plumage is soft, silky, and of a pale reddish brown, lightest upon the under side. The sexes are alike in colour, and the young without any spots upon their feathers. So very similar are all these birds in their mode of life that we shall confine ourselves to a full description of but one species.
THE TREE NIGHTINGALE.
The TREE NIGHTINGALE (Aëdon galactodes) is of a reddish grey upon the upper parts of the body, darker upon the top of the head than elsewhere; the nape is greyish, the under side greyish yellow or dirty white, tinted with red on the sides of the neck, and with reddish yellow on the thighs; the cheeks are whitish brown, and a white streak passes over the eyes. The quills and upper wing-covers are brown, the former diversified with a narrow light brown edge, and the latter with a broad border of reddish yellow; the tail-feathers, with the exception of the one in the centre, are of a beautiful rust-red, with a white tip, the latter marked with a round, blackish brown spot; the eye is deep brown, the beak and feet reddish. This species is about seven inches long and eleven broad; the wing measures rather more than three, and the tail three inches.
The Tree Nightingales are found principally on arid spots, but sparsely overgrown with low brushwood, though they by no means avoid cultivated districts or the immediate neighbourhood of man. In Spain, they constantly frequent the vineyards and olive plantations, and in North-eastern Africa take up their abode in the gardens, or close to the huts of the natives, provided that they there find a few of their favourite bushes whereon to perch. We ourselves have never met with them in the primitive forests, or upon lofty mountains, though they often frequent wooded highlands. Such of these birds as inhabit Central Africa are stationary, whilst those occupying Northern Africa and Southern Europe migrate, leaving their more northern habitat about the end of September and returning in April. The males take their departure first, followed in a few days by their mates: arrived at their destination, they soon spread themselves over the face of the country. In their habits they are somewhat peculiar; they always select the very topmost point of a bush, post, or tree, as their ordinary perch, and on it they sit with tail erect, drooping wing, upright body, and legs drawn in, as they pour out their song, or glance sharply around in search of a worm or beetle. Should a prize of this nature be discerned, the bird will instantly dart down, flourishing and spreading its tail, and, after running rapidly for a few paces, seize its prey and return to its observatory, uttering a short call-note denoting extreme satisfaction. Their mode of flight and other movements are almost identical with those of the Nightingale, and like that bird they seek their food principally upon the ground, coming occasionally even into the streets of towns, when hard pressed for the means of subsistence, though at other times they are extremely cautious and timid. Strange to say, such as came under our own notice in Central Africa would permit the dark-coloured natives to approach quite close to them, but took instant alarm at the appearance of a white man. The voice of this species is capable of but very little variety, and will bear no comparison with that of its world-famed relative; yet, in spite of this inferiority, it is ever a favourite, its constant cheerfulness enlivening all that listen to its almost incessant song, which may be heard not only through the whole of the breeding season, but is uttered as the little creature runs, perches, or even flies through the air. The period of incubation commences at the end of May, and lasts for a considerable time. The nest, which is large and roughly formed of twigs, moss, and grass, lined with hair, wool, and feathers, is placed either against the trunk of a tree or on one of the larger branches, or in a thick bush. The eggs have a dirty white or blueish grey shell, marked with pale dark patches and brown spots. We are without particulars regarding the rearing of the nestlings, but have ourselves met with unfledged young as late as September.
The BLUE-THROATED WARBLERS (Cyanecula) are birds with slender bodies, short blunt wings, and high, slender legs. Their long beak is compressed at the nostrils, the upper mandible slightly raised, but sharp-pointed at its extremity. The plumage is lax, and varies in hue with the age or sex of the bird. In the male the upper part of the body is dark brown, the under side dirty white, streaked at the sides with greyish brown. The throat, which is of a magnificent ultramarine blue, is decorated in some instances with a dark star, which spreads and extends downwards like a black streak, separated from a crescent-shaped spot upon the breast by a delicate light line. A band across the eyes is of a whitish, and the bridles of a blackish hue. The quills are brownish grey; the tail-feathers, except in the centre, blackish-brown at their distal half; rust-red towards the roots. The eye is dark brown, the beak black, the feet greenish in front, and yellowish grey behind. In the plumage of the female all the colours are paler than those of her mate. The young are spotted with rust-red on the back, and striped on the under side, their throat being whitish. This bird is six inches long and eight and a half broad; the wing measures two inches and three-quarters, and the tail two inches and a quarter. The various species of Blue-throated Warblers are distinguishable from each other by the somewhat varied coloration of their throats; thus, that of the male SWEDISH BLUE-Throat (Cyanecula Suecica) has a reddish star in its centre, the WHITE-STARRED BLUE-THROAT (Cyanecula leucocyana) a white star, whilst the Cyanecula Wolfii is entirely without this decoration.
THE SWEDISH BLUE-THROAT (Cyanecula Suecica).