THRASHERS AND WRENS 161 



times. You will catch a glimpse of his fine brown 

 dress as he dives from his song perch into the 

 thicket, or as he darts in and out, close to the 

 ground, in the alder and hazel tangle where he 

 nests. He seems rather restless and easily 

 alarmed, indicating his dislike for your pres- 

 ence by a loud ''smack,'' which is the most 

 emphatic alarm note I hear among song birds. 

 If you quietly enter his bush-grown bower you 

 may see him hopping and running about on the 

 ground, flirting and flourishing his very promi- 

 nent tail, like a Wren, as he searches for grubs, 

 beetles and other insects, which, in the early 

 part of the summer, constitute a large part of 

 his food. Later he enjoys a change of food, pre- 

 ferring cherries, berries and many wild fruits. 



They build, on or near the ground, a bulky 

 nest of twigs, leaves and bark, lined with fine 

 rootlets. The four or five eggs are white, thickly 

 and evenly sprinkled with cinnamon-brown. 

 The Brown Thrasher is about a foot long and is 

 A very handsome bird. The upper parts of his 

 dress are beautiful cinnamon-brown; the under 

 parts are w^hite, heavily spotted and streaked 

 with dark brown, except at the throat and 

 middle of the belly. The tail is long, wide, and 

 drooping w^hen singing. The eyes are yellow, 

 the bill long and slightly curved. They range in 

 summer over eastern North America as far 

 north as Montreal and Manitoba, and winter 

 from North Carolina, southward. 



Mockingbird. This wonderful singer holds the 

 same place in the hearts of those people who 

 have had the good fortune to live within its 



