78 THE MISSEL-THRUSH. 



(lows or pasture grounds. They are remarkably 

 fond of ripe geans, and commit great havoc among 

 a crop of this fruit ; in winter we have seen them 

 select the berries of the holly and the yew in pre- 

 ference to those of the hawthorn, or our other 

 native kinds. This thrush remains with us during 

 the year, and we are not aware of any partial mi- 

 gration taking place, or of any accession of num- 

 bers, though we have sometimes thought that the 

 small flocks of from twenty to thirty before alluded 

 to, appeared to be removing at least from one 

 district to another. These may have been parties 

 of the younger birds commencing a migration, for 

 we have hardly an increase to account for all those 

 which are bred in a district ; at the same time, we 

 know that many pairs of old birds remain con- 

 stantly, and without changing the range to a great 

 distance, and some we have seen, for a year toge- 

 ther, every day we remained at home. 



The general colour of the upper plumage is 

 hair brown, varying in intensity, and sometimes 

 tinted with yellowish or with oil-green, which 

 prevails on the neck. The outer webs of the quills, 

 coverts and scapulars, are edged with pale wood 

 brown ; the inner webs umber-brown, tinted with 

 ash-gray ; the tail is chiefly of the latter colour ; 

 the outer feathers tipped with white. The under 

 parts are clear and delicate yellowish white, often 

 shaded on the sides of the breast and flanks with 

 buff-orange ; the tip of each feather has an umber- 

 brown spot, triangular in form on the throat and 

 breast, on the belly and flanks of the shape of (lie 



