. A history of British birds . lly much the larger bird, and in fresh specimens ofthe adult of each the colour of the legs is sufliciently diag-nostic ; but practised ornithologists have been known to beuncertain if not to fail in discriminating the young, and evenpreserved specimens of the adult, for though generally thegreener colour of the Willow-Wren above, and its whiterbelly serve as a guide, these cannot always be trusted, anymore than occasionally the form of the wing and the relativeproportion of its primaries. It is believed, however, that inthe Willow-Wren the third, fourth and fift
. A history of British birds . lly much the larger bird, and in fresh specimens ofthe adult of each the colour of the legs is sufliciently diag-nostic ; but practised ornithologists have been known to beuncertain if not to fail in discriminating the young, and evenpreserved specimens of the adult, for though generally thegreener colour of the Willow-Wren above, and its whiterbelly serve as a guide, these cannot always be trusted, anymore than occasionally the form of the wing and the relativeproportion of its primaries. It is believed, however, that inthe Willow-Wren the third, fourth and fifth primaries havetheir outer web suddenly narrowed towards the tip, while inthe Chiffchaft the sixth has also the same shape, but notalways the third*. * This little matter may affect some people more than might at first appear,for hy a recent Act of Parliament (35 and 36 Vict. chap. 78) the Chiffchaff is pro-tected, while the Willow-Wren is not. To these birds the Act cannot much signify. i CHIFFCHAFF PASSE RES. 437 Phylloscopus collybita (Vieillot*). THE CHIFFCHAFF. Sylvia rufa\. With the exception of the Wheatear the Chiflfchaff isthe first of the Warblers that visit us in spring, if indeedit ever entirely leaves this island, and by its sprightly ac-tions, as well as its oft-repeated double-note, from whichit derives its name, is always a welcome visitor as aharbinger of returning fine weather. This hardy littlebird, the existence of which was first shewn by White ofSelborne, is not uncommonly seen as early as the middleof March, and towards the end of that month occurs prettygenerally, so that it is commonly heard in the woods beforethe trees are in leaf to hide it. On its first arrival it issaid to feed chiefly on the larvfie of the difierent species ofTortrix that are rolled up in the unfolding buds, rendering * Sylvia coUyhlta, Vieillot, Nouv. Diet. dHist. Nat. Nouv. fid. xi. p. 235(1817). + Not Motacilla rufa, Boddaert, nor M. rufa, 3, F. Gmelin. 438 SYLVIID.
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