274 THE ESSEX NATURALIST.
Crow claims 37 sets=179 eggs, the Rook 13 sets=73 eggs, the
Jackdaw 36 sets=177 eggs, the Magpie 33 sets=227 eggs and
the Jay 68 sets=357 eggs. Among the finches the most notable
are the Greenfinch with 25 sets=133 eggs, the Linnet 15 sets=
74 eggs, the Bullfinch with 14 sets=74 eggs, the Chaffinch at
the head of the group with 43 sets=209 eggs and that enemy of
the horticulturist, the House-Sparrow, with 29 sets=141 eggs.
The buntings are a small group, but there are 42 sets=164
eggs of the Yellow Bunting and the Reed-Bunting has 41 sets=
202 eggs. The eggs of the Tree- and Meadow-Pipits are a
further reflection of the inequality of distribution. The former
has 51 sets=274 eggs, which were all taken in Essex, while
the latter has 9 sets=38 eggs, none having been taken in the
County. The Pied Wagtail claims 23 sets=77 eggs. The
Titmice are the group which lay the largest sets, and of them
the Blue Tit has the highest representation with 6 sets=68 eggs.
Then there are 18 sets=100 eggs of the Red-backed Shrike and
20 sets=100 eggs of the Spotted Flycatcher. The Sedge- and
Garden-Warblers, Blackcap and Whitethroat share 109 sets=
555 eggs, the last named claiming about half of this total.
The Thrushes' numbers are not large, the Blackbird heading
the list with 16 sets=68 eggs. Those common Essex birds
the Robin and the Hedge-Sparrow have respectively 23 sets =
114 eggs and 68 sets=214 eggs. The enigma of our birds,
the Cuckoo, is represented by 122 eggs, a relatively large number
and forming one of the more specialised features of the collection.
The raptorials, birds of prey, include 42 sets=212 eggs of the
Kestrel, 23 sets=69 eggs of the Common Buzzard and 155 sets=
745 eggs of the Sparrow-Hawk. The eggs of the last mentioned
are the main feature of the collection. Mr. Owen makes the
point that this gives an average of 4.8 per nest and that for one
hundred nests of first layings the average is just over 5 eggs.
AU the eggs of the Sparrow-Hawk are of Essex provenance
and they cover a wide range of colour and markings. From
the remainder of the species the only numbers which call for
mention are 44 sets=173 eggs of the Lapwing, 24 sets=96 eggs
of the Common Snipe, and finally 37 sets=113 eggs of the Black-
headed Gull.
The most attractive character of the egg is its variability,
which manifests itself in texture, shape, size and number,