Well  then  they  are  hatched  blind  ;  and  at  first
the  dull,  darkly  flesh-tinted  body  is  scantily  clad
here  and  there  with  plumes  of  softly-tinted,  greyish-
brown  down.  The  bill,  which  is  quite  straight,
though  chubby,  is  yellow  round  the  edges  of  the
mandibles,  a  tint  which  shades  into  greyish-
green  on  the  upper  one,  to  flesh -colour  on  the
lower.  The  interior  of  the  mouth  is  very  notice-
able, being  a  combination  of  vivid  carmine  and
purple.  The  tongue,  however,  is  flesh-tinted  .  ..
In  their  first  full  plumage,  acquired  when  about  a
fortnight  old,  they  sport  the  following  dress—
Upper-parts :  head,  dark  brown  with  a  huffish
edging  to  each  feather  ;  back,  dark  greyish-brown
with  similar  facings  of  buff  or  fawn  ;  rump,  quite
decided  buff  streaked  with  dark-brown ;  wings,
dark  greyish-brown  with  faint  edgings  of  pale
fawn.  Under-parts:  breast,  buffish  ;  and  belly,
nearly  white,  the  whole  striated  with  dark  brown.
Legs,  leaden  pink  ;  claw  nails,  strong  and  grey.
Bill,  still  quite  straight,  but  large  and  full,  with


SUSSEX  CROSSBILLS  41

the  point  of  the  upper  mandible  distinctly  hooked,
the  hook,  however,  having  a  straight-cut  face,  not
a  curved  one  ;  and  the  upper  mandible  is  brownish-
grey  with  a  tinge  of  green  about  it,  fading  into
yellow  along  its  edges,  the  lower  one  greenish-
grey  and  paler  altogether,  also  fading  into  yellow
along  the  line  where  the  two  mandibles  meet.
