WOOD THRUSH. 203 



I St to the 15th of April; though his appearance here, where 

 the species is scarce, does not take place earlier than the be- 

 ginning of May. At the dawn of morning he now announces 

 his presence in the woods, and from the top of some tall tree, 

 rising through the dark and shady forest, he pours out his few, 

 clear, and harmonious notes in a pleasing revery, as if inspired 

 by the enthusiasm of renovated Nature. The prelude to this 

 song resembles almost the double tonguing of the flute, blended 

 with a tinkling, shrill, and solemn warble which re-echoes from 

 his solitary retreat like the dirge of some sad recluse who 

 shuns the busy haunts of life. The whole air consists usually 

 of 4 parts or bars, which succeed, in deliberate time, and 

 finally blend together in impressive and soothing harmony, 

 becoming more mellow and sweet at every repetition. Rival 

 performers seem to challenge each other from various parts of 

 the wood, vying for the favor of their mates with sympathetic 

 responses and softer tones ; and some, waging a jealous strife, 

 terminate the warm dispute by an appeal to combat and vio- 

 lence. Like the Robin and the Thrasher, in dark and gloomy 

 weather, when other birds are sheltered and silent, the clear 

 notes of the Wood Thrush are heard through the dropping 

 woods from dawn to dusk, so that the sadder the day, the 

 sweeter and more constant is his song. His clear and inter- 

 rupted whistle is likewise often nearly the only voice of melody 

 heard by the traveller, to mid-day, in the heat of summer, as he 

 traverses the silent, dark, and wooded wilderness, remote from 

 the haunts of men. It is nearly impossible by words to con- 

 vey any idea of the peculiar warble of this vocal hermit ; but 

 amongst his phrases the sound of ^airdee, peculiarly liquid, and 

 followed by a trill repeated in two interrupted bars, is readily 

 recognizable. At times the notes bear a considerable resem- 

 blance to those of Wilson's Thrush ; such as eh rhehu ^vrhehu, 

 then varied to VA vilFia villia, ^eh villia vrhehu, then VA velu 

 villiu, high and shrill. 



The Wood Thrush is always of a shy and retiring disposi- 

 tion, appearing alone or only in single pairs, and while he 

 willingly charms us with his song, he is content and even soli- 



