MERULID®. TL 
The food of the Ring Ouzel consists of insects, 
snails, fruit and berries, particularly the berries of 
the mountain ash, of which it appears to be very 
fond: ivy-berries, it is said, afford this bird its 
principal food on its return in the spring. 
The nest is said to be usually placed on or near 
the ground, or on the side of a bank, under cover of 
some bush or stone, or amongst heather: the one in 
my collection, which was taken at Pixton, is much 
like that of the Blackbird, being made of rough 
coarse grass, fibrous roots and mud, and lined with 
long bents. 
The Ring Ouzel has the point of the beak dark 
horn-colour; the centre of the upper mandible, and 
all the rest of the lower, yellow; the base of the 
upper mandible dark horn; irides dark brown; 
head, neck, throat, back, scapulars and tail-coverts 
black; there is a white crescent on the breast, all 
the rest of the under parts are black, each feather 
being edged with grey; tail dusky; greater and 
lesser wing-coverts, primary and secondary quills 
dusky, more or less edged with grey; the tertials 
are dusky, without any grey edging; legs, toes and 
claws brownish black. 
The female differs slightly; all the upper surface 
is a rusty black; the feathers under the throat are 
slightly edged and tipped with white; the white 
crescent on the breast is quite as conspicuous as in 
the male, but not quite so broad in the centre; the 
