44 Land Birds of New England 



The hermit thrush is the most exquisite of all our 

 singers ; but his music is rarely to be heard with 

 us, for he is usually silent except in the summer, 

 although he has been heard to sing during both 

 spring and fall migrations. His song has been de- 

 scribed by Burroughs, " ' O spheral, spheral, O 

 holy, holy : O clear away, clear away, O clear 

 up, clear up,' interposed with the finest trills and 

 the most delicate preludes." There is said to be 

 about it a peculiar spiritual quality lacking in the 

 song of any other bird. 



LITERATURE : 



Little Brothers of the Air. OLIVE THORNE MILLER. 



4. OLIVE-BACKED THRUSH 



(Turdus ustulatus swainsonii*} 



Upper parts of a uniform olive brown ; under parts grayish white, 

 passing into pure white on the middle of the belly and pale olive 

 on its sides ; throat and breast thickly marked with rather small 

 dusky spots except on the middle of the throat, where they are 

 entirely absent. Beak slender, the upper mandible dark, and the 

 lower one dark at the tip and yellow at the base; feet brown. 

 Bird rather larger than a sparrow. Sexes similar, save that the 

 female is usually a little smaller. 



THE olive-backed thrush should be sought among 

 woods, in orchards, or along swampy roads. It 

 spends the latter part of May in the vicinity of 

 Boston, passes on to northern New England to 



