Ornithological dictionary of British birds / By G. Montagu.

  • George Montagu
Date:
1831
Catalogue details

Licence: Public Domain Mark

Credit: Ornithological dictionary of British birds / By G. Montagu. Source: Wellcome Collection.

    84/666 page 16
    Latham has made no less than three species of it, by following, as usual, the blunders in Gmelin’s Linnzus; while Buffon, erring in a different way, gives a heterogeneous description of the chiff-chaff, the white-throat, and the hay-bird, (Sylvia trochilus), as well as our Babillard, for the same species, confounding the several descriptions of Belon, Aldrovand, Olina, and Schwenckfeld, though all so very distinct to those who know the birds, as Montagu clearly did.’ This species was first noticed as a native by Mr. Lightfoot in Buck- inghamshire, and communicated to Dr. Latham, who first gave it to the world as a British species in the Supplement to his Synopsis. It is less than the white-throat ; length five inches and a quarter ; weight about three drams and a quarter. The bill is dusky; irides yellowish, with a dash of pearl-colour. The upper part of the head, taking in the eyes, is a dark ash-colour; all the other parts above cinereous-brown ; quills and tails dusky, edged with ash-colour ; the exterior feather of the tail whitish almost to the base; the outer web quite white; from throat to vent, including the under tail coverts, silvery white; legs dusky lead-colour. This and the white-throat have doubtless been confounded ; nor is it easy to determine which of them is the Sylvia of Linnzus. The great distinction between this and the white-throat and its varieties is, that this is inferior in size; the bill is shorter, the under as well as upper mandible is dusky; the legs darker; the whole under parts of the plumage much whiter ; and the upper parts do not possess the least appearance of rufous-brown, which in the other is more or less invari- ably found, especially on the wing coverts. “I may add to this that the leaden or greyish blue colour of this bird was remarked by Belon two centuries ago. The whole breast and belly, as well as the throat, are nearly snow white, while only the throat is greyish white in the white- throat, whose legs are yellowish, in living birds. The legs of the Babillard are greyish black or deep lead colour. The haunts and manners of the two birds are also different ; for while the white- throat frequents the tangled hedge-row, the green lane, and the bram- ble copse, the Babillard prefers a garden, an orchard, or a plantation of gooseberry or currant bushes, whence it is a frequent inhabitant of market gardens near London. The Babillard is also somewhat more shy and wary of showing itself, like the blackcap and the fauvette, (Sylvia hortensis), which haunt the same localities. Both are cheer- ful, spirited, and restless; but the incessant warbling of the species under notice, has obtained it the continental name which we have adopted.”
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