472 THRUSHES, SOLITAIRES, BLUEBIRDS, ETC. 



iu the liush of sunset, when the western sky is aglow and the deep 

 voice rises from its chantry iu slow, soul-stirring cadences, high-uj)- 

 high-up, look-uj), look-up. 



759c. H. g. nana {And.). Dwarf Hermit Thrush. 



Like guttata, but color darkei' and richer ; upper parts brownish oliva- 

 ceous, tending toward raw umber ; top of head and rump browner than 

 back ; upper tail coverts and tail burnt umber ; under parts more buffy 

 than in guttata. Wing : 3.25, tail 2.75, bill .50, tarsus 1.12. 



Distribution. — Pacific coast region, from Washington southward, breed- 

 ing south to Sierra Nevada region ; east in migrations to Nevada and Ari- 

 zona, and south to Lower California and western Mexico. 



GENUS MERULA.i 



General Characters. — Bill slender and compressed, 

 notched near end ; nostrils wholly exposed ; tail more than 

 3 three times as long as tarsus ; under parts spotted in 

 Fig. 599. young. 



KEY TO SPECIES. 



1. Outer tail feather with distinct white spot at tip of inner web ; colors 



darker migratoria, p. 472. 



r. Outer tail feather without distinct white tip to inner web ; colors paler. 



propinqua, p. 472. 



761. Merula migratoria (Linn.). Robin. 



Like M. m. propinqua. but outer tail feather with a distinct white spot 



at tip of inner web ; 



Fig. 600. 



anterior portion of 

 back usually some- 

 what clouded with 

 black in fully adult 

 birds. Length : 9-10, 

 wing 4.90-5.40, tail 

 4.10-4.50,bill.85-.92. 

 Distribution. — 

 Breeds from Alaska 

 and the arctic coasts 

 southeast through 

 Hudson Bay region 

 and the Rocky Moun- 

 tains to Kansas, Vir- 

 ginia, and the Atlan- 



tic coast ; winters from southern Canada southward. 



Nest and eggs. — Like those of M. m. propinqua. 



Food. — Crickets, grasshoppers, and other noxious insects, seeds, wild 

 fruit, and berries. 



761a. M. m. propinqua Bidgw. Western Robin. 

 Adults. — Head, wings, and tail blackish ; rest of upper parts slaty 



1 A specimen of Merula conjinis was taken by Mr. Emerson at Hay wards, Cal., in Janu- 

 ary, 1882. {Zoe, i. 4G.) 



