JAN., 1909. BIRDS OF ILLINOIS AND WISCONSIN. CORY. 713 



a spot in front of the eye and eyelid, white; primaries, dusky slate- 

 color, with pale edges; under parts and under wing coverts, rufous 

 chestnut, usually more or less white on lower belly; under tail coverts, 

 white; tail, brownish black, the outer tail feather tipped with white; 

 bill, mostly yellow. 



Adult female in summer: Similar but paler, the feathers on back 

 of head tipped with grayish. 



Adult male and female in fall and winter: Feathers of under parts, 

 tipped with white; crown feathers, dusky, edged with grayish; bill, 

 dark. 



Immature in summer: Plumage paler; under parts spotted with 

 black; back with whitish centres to feathers; a whitish stripe over 

 the eye. 



Length, 9.50 to 10.50; wing, 5.10; tail, 4; bill, .80. 



The Robin is an abundant summer resident in Illinois and Wis- 

 consin, and a not uncommon winter resident in the more southern 

 portion of Illinois and casually much farther north. 



The majority breed in May and early in June. The nest is rather 

 large, composed of grass, small twigs, leaves, and mud, usually on a 

 branch of a tree. The eggs are from 3 to 5, plain greenish blue, very 

 rarely with a few irregular brown spots, and measure about 1.15 

 x .79 inches. 



The song of the Robin is melodious and varied, although he is 

 prone to indulge in a series of loud and somewhat unmusical chirps. 

 He is among the first to cheer us in the spring and is still to be heard 

 late in the fall when most of our feathered songsters are missing. 

 While he may annoy us by eating our cherries and small fruits, he also 

 destroys many worms and injurious insects, and to quote my esteemed 

 friend, Robert Ridgway, " ' With all his faults, we love him still.' No 

 American orchard would be complete without its pair of Robins, and 

 his absence would create a void in the ranks of our birds, which would 

 be felt by every one who cherishes memories of his boyhood days." 



