42 OUR IRISH SONG BIRDS. 



The song of the Blackbird in the early morning often 

 sounds somewhat harsh and unmusical. To me it 

 seems as if he were but half awake, and, disturbed rather 

 against his will, would have preferred waiting a little 

 longer before he commenced his song ; but as the sun 

 arises in the heavens, he soon wakes up, and greets it 

 with his loud and joyous morning hymn. The shrill 

 alarm cry of the Blackbird, when disturbed, is well 

 known ; his chuckle, as he skims over the garden wall, 

 is said sometimes to sound like, " Ha ! ha ! I shall soon 

 be back again." At the approach of night, too, he is 

 usually vociferous, and his " pink, pink, pink, tac, tac, 

 tac," may be heard for a long distance, as he flies from 

 tree to tree, or nestles in the ivy before he composes 

 himself to sleep. 



Pied Blackbirds are occasionally met with ; I have 

 one in my collection. And a hen Blackbird, with a grey 

 head, frequently made her appearance at Elm Park. 

 White Blackbirds an apparent contradiction in terms, 

 but one for which we have the authority of Archbishop 

 Trench have been noticed on several occasions ; and 

 Mr. Morris mentions one which was of a blue lavender 

 colour, the legs and feet only black. Cream-coloured 

 varieties are very rare. Mr. Johns tells us that the title 

 to a certain estate near Paris is kept up by the annual 

 presentation of a white Blackbird to the lord of the 

 manor. 



The eggs, usually five in number, are of a light blue or 

 greenish-brown colour, spotted with reddish brown. The 

 nest "a bulky structure" is generally found in a bush, 

 or in the ivy on a low wall ; but it occurs in a great 

 variety of situations. 



