LIST OF ILLUSTRATIONS.
| PAGE | |
| Blackbird, Female, admiring her single giant chick | [29] |
| Blackbird’s Nest | [27] |
| Blackcap Warbler, Female, feeding young | [185] |
| Blackcap Warbler’s Nest and Eggs | [183] |
| Bullfinch, Female, on the Nest | [191] |
| Bullfinch’s Nest and Eggs | [189] |
| Chaffinch on the Nest | [227] |
| Chaffinches, Sparrows, and Starling feeding in Winter | [229] |
| Chaffinches, Young | [231] |
| Chiffchaff and Nest | [121] |
| Chiffchaff’s Nest and Eggs | [122] |
| “Come and hear the Cuckoo sing” | [6] |
| Cuckoo, Adult | [5] |
| Cuckoo, Young, and his Tree Pipit foster-mother | [9] |
| Cuckoo, Young, asking for food | [13] |
| Cuckoo, Young, in Meadow Pipit’s Nest, Bird’sown eggs thrown out on to edge of structure | [3] |
| Cuckoo, Young, waiting for its foster-mother withfood | [7] |
| Cuckoo’s Egg in Meadow Pipit’s Nest | [3] |
| Dartford Warbler | [105] |
| Dipper and Nest | [116] |
| Garden Warbler on Nest | [165] |
| Garden Warbler’s Nest and Eggs | [166] |
| Golden-Crested Wren at Nest | [250] |
| Goldfinch’s Nest and Eggs | [179] |
| Grasshopper Warbler on Nest | [68] |
| Greenfinch, Male, in a Garden in Winter | [99] |
| Greenfinch’s Nest and Eggs | [101] |
| Hedge Sparrow and Young | [95] |
| Hedge Sparrow’s Nest and Eggs | [94] |
| Lesser Whitethroat feeding young | [138] |
| Lesser Whitethroat’s Nest and Eggs | [137] |
| Lesser Redpole’s Nest and Eggs | [151] |
| Linnet bringing food for young | [241] |
| Linnet’s Nest and Eggs | [239] |
| Marsh Warbler on the Nest | [170] |
| Meadow Pipit, Adult | [84] |
| Meadow Pipit’s Nest and Eggs | [85] |
| Meadow Pipit, Young, sheltering behind a stone | [83] |
| Missel Thrush at Nest | [112] |
| Missel Thrushes, Newly-fledged | [110] |
| Nightingale ([Frontispiece]) | |
| Nightingale’s Nest and Eggs | [133] |
| Pied Flycatcher, Male, outside nesting hole | [234] |
| Redstart, Female, with food for chicks | [78] |
| Redstart, Male, with food for young | [79] |
| Redstart’s Nest and Eggs beneath a stone on theground | [80] |
| Reed Bunting, Female, and Young | [175] |
| Reed Warbler, Young | [156] |
| Reed Warblers at Home | [155] |
| Reed Warbler’s Nest and Eggs | [154] |
| Ring Ouzel, Female, covering young in nest during a shower of rain | [46] |
| Ring Ouzel’s Nest | [45] |
| Robin, Cock, bringing food for his chicks | [19] |
| Robin, Female, bringing food to her young | [23] |
| Robin, Young, in its first coat of feathers | [21] |
| Robin’s Nest | [17] |
| Rock Pipit’s Nest and Eggs | [161] |
| Sedge Warbler on Nest | [145] |
| Sedge Warbler’s Nest with Cuckoo’s Egg in it | [145] |
| Siskin’s Nest and Eggs | [142] |
| Skylark, Mother, feeding chicks | [74] |
| Skylark’s Nest and Eggs | [72] |
| Song Thrush at Nest | [206] |
| Song Thrushes, Young, waiting for mother | [211] |
| Song Thrush’s Nest and Eggs | [208] |
| Starling, Adult, in Winter | [223] |
| Starling in its first coat of feathers | [221] |
| Stonechat’s Nest and Eggs | [199] |
| Swallow, Newly-fledged | [246] |
| Swallows, Young, on telegraph wires | [245] |
| Tree Pipit about to alight on young Cuckoo’s backwith food | [11] |
| Tree Pipit coming with food for young Cuckoo | [10] |
| Tree Pipit feeding young Cuckoo whilst standingon his shoulders | [14] |
| Tree Pipit, Female, about to enter nest | [51] |
| Tree Pipit stretching herself after having fed youngCuckoo | [2] |
| Tree Pipit’s Nest and Eggs | [49] |
| Twite on Nest in Honeysuckle tied against a storm-sweptHebridean garden wall | [35] |
| Twite, Young, just fledged | [34] |
| Twite’s Nest and Eggs | [33] |
| Wheatear, Male, bringing food for young | [196] |
| Wheatears, Young, waiting for food | [197] |
| Wheatear’s Nest and Eggs beneath a stone | [195] |
| Whinchat’s Nest and Eggs | [203] |
| Whitethroat on Nest | [128] |
| Whitethroat’s Nest and Eggs | [127] |
| Willow Wren bringing food to young in nest | [91] |
| Willow Wren’s Nest and Eggs | [88] |
| Willow Wrens, Young | [89] |
| Woodlark, Newly fledged | [56] |
| Woodlark’s Nest and Eggs | [55] |
| Wood Wren, Female, about to enter nest | [40] |
| Wood Wren’s Nest and Eggs | [39] |
| Wren about to enter Nest with food for chicks | [62] |
| Wren’s Nest amongst Ivy growing on the trunk ofa tree | [60] |
| Yellow Hammer on Nest | [215] |
| Yellow Hammer’s Nest and Eggs | [217] |
Nature’s Carol Singers.
THE CUCKOO.
“Not the whole warbling grove in concert heard
When sunshine follows shower the breast can thrill
Like the first summons, Cuckoo, of thy bill.”
—Wordsworth.
he soft, far reaching notes of the Cuckoo are loved by young and old alike, because they tell a tale of hope and gladness, of warm sunshine and sweet spring flowers. It has been regarded as “the darling of the year” all down the ages since the oldest known English lyric, in which it figures, was penned: