strain has reached my ears * * * that to me is the finest sound in nature 
of the Hermit Thrush.” 
The beginner will be puzzled to discriminate between the several Thrushes. As 
the song 
regards the three here mentioned, the Wood, the Veery and the Hermit, the differences in 
the color of the back will guide him aright. 
Miss Merriam thus concisely states these variations : 
‘“The brown of the Wood Thrush ts reddest on the head and shoulders. 
““The brown of the Hermit is reddest on the tail. 
“The Tawny has a uniformly tawny back.” 
PLATE LXIl.—WOOD THRUSH. 
Turdus mustelinus. 
Above cinnamon-brown, reddest on the head, shading into olive on 
the rump and tail; beneath white, thickly spotted on breast and sides 
with dark-brown, but the chin, throat and middle of belly are im- 
O 
maculate ; tail nearly even; bill brown; feet pale. Length, 8.25 inches. 
Migratory. Arrives early in May, leaves late in September. Nests usually in woods, 
205 
