THE MISSEL THRUSH. 83 



In the spring the Missel Thrush discontinues his gre- 

 garious habits, and after choosing a mate, becomes less 

 distrustful, and frequents woods, gardens, and orchards. 

 The food of the bird comprises the berries of the mountain 

 ash, service tree, yew, juniper, holly, ivy, hips and haws, 

 grain, seeds of various kinds, caterpillars, beetles and other 

 insects, worms, slugs, and snails. The ancients had an 

 erroneous idea that this bird was a sort of foster-parent 

 to the mistletoe, which they imagined would not vegetate 

 unless the berries had first passed through its body. 



The nest is somewhat loosely made of twigs, small 

 sticks, hay, straw, grasses, leaves, wool, and moss; it is 

 compacted by a free use of mud mixed with fibrous roots 

 and grass, and lined with finer grasses and moss. It is 

 placed generally in the foi'ks of trees, and the eggs, four 

 to five in number, are laid in April : they are of a greenish 

 or reddish-white, and spotted irregularly with reddish- 

 brown or purple ; they vary much in size and colour. 



The male Missel Thrush ceases to sing at the com- 

 mencement of hatching, and does n/>t repeat his song until 

 the next spring, unless he should lose his mate or his nest, 

 when his vocal efforts are renewed. 



The length of the male is eleven inches and a-half. The 

 bill is dark brown ; the upper mandible yellow at its base, 

 from which a cream-coloured streak goes over the eye ; 

 iris dark brown. Head on the side yellowish- white ; on 

 the crown, neck, nape, greyish olive-brown ; chin, throat 

 and breast, pale yellowish-white, each feather tipped with 

 black; the throat faintly so; the spots on the upper part 

 are triangular ; on the middle and sides oblong black, 

 greyish olive-brown, lighter on the lower part. Under- 

 neath, the wings are grey, but the upper parts are deep 



