474 THRUSHES, SOLITAIRES, BLUEBIRDS, ETC. 



763. Ixoreus nsevius (Gmel). Varied Thrush. 



Adult male. — Under parts bright rusty broivn, throat crossed by blackish 

 necklace ; belly mixed white d,nd gray ; upper parts dark bluish slate, 

 feathers edg-ed with lig-hter ; wing-s banded and edg-ed with brown; side 

 of head black, bordered above by brown streak. Adult female : similar, 

 but much duller ; upper parts washed with brown — deeper in winter — 

 and collar obscured by brown feathers. Young : like female, but duller ; 

 collar less distinct, and more or less spotted with yellowish brown ; feath- 

 ers of breast edged with dusky and those of upper parts with distinct 

 paler shaft streaks. Length : SJ-IU, wing- 4.90-.O.20, tail about 8.60-3.80, 

 bill about 1. 



Distribution. — Breeds in Boreal zone along- the Pacific coast from Ber- 

 ing- Strait to Humboldt County, Cal. ; winters from Washington to Lower 

 California. 



Nest. — Comjiact and bulky, in bushes and small trees. Eggs : 4, pale 

 greenish blue, sparingly speckled with brown. 



Food. — Caterpillars, weevils, ants, millipeds, mast, and wild berries. 



The varied thrushes reach California in November, and flocks of 

 the splendid beauties, with orange breast and dark necklace, may be 

 seen in winter in the arboretum at Stanford and other places where 

 California holly berries are to be found. The birds are also es- 

 pecially fond of manzanita berries. In Placer County, Mr. Wil- 

 liams says, they live on insect food in winter, and are extremely shy, 

 rarely leaving the dark, heavily wooded canyons or hillsides. In 

 Oregon, Mr. Anthony tells us they are timid on their first arrival, 

 but grow tame enough to visit the ranches. They leave California 

 in March, and at that time Dr. Mearns found them abundant and 

 tame at Fort Klamath, coming about the houses fearlessly in great 

 numbers. 



Mr. Fuertes, in describing the song of the varied thrush as he 

 heard it in Alaska, says that it is " most unique and mysterious, and 

 may be heard in the deep still spruce forests for a great distance, 

 being very loud and wonderfully penetrating. It is a single long- 

 drawn note, uttered in several different keys, some of the high- 

 pitched ones with a strong vibrant trill. Each note grows out of 

 nothing, swells to a full tone, and then fades away to nothing until 

 one is carried away with the mysterious song. When heard near 

 by, as is seldom possible, the pure yet resonant quality of the note 

 makes one thrill with a strange feeling, and is as perfectly the voice 

 of the cool, dark, peaceful solitude which the bird chooses for its 

 home as could be imagined. The hermit thrush himself is no more 

 serene than this wild dweller in the western spruce forests." 



763a. I. n. meruloides {Swains.). Pale Varied Thrush. 



Adult female. — Similar to female ncevius^ but grayer and paler, white 

 marking's more extended, wing- longer, more pointed. 



Distribution. — Breeds in interior of northern Alaska ; migrates to south- 

 ern California. 



