16 NOKTII aMKRICAN BIRDS. 



fibres, the flowering stems of the Cladonia mosses, lichens, fine strips of 

 bark, etc. 



The eggs, which are four or five in number, exhibit noticeable variations 

 in size, shape, and shades of coloring, bearing some resemblance to those 

 of T. ustulatm and to the eggs asserted to be those of T. nanus, but are 

 sufficiently distinct, and are still more so from those of T. alicicc. They 

 range in length from .83 to .94, with a mean of .88, their mean breadth 

 is .66, the maximum .69, and the minimum .63. Their ground color is 

 usually bluisli-green, sometimes liglit blue with hardly a tinge of green, 

 and the spots are of a yellowish-brown, or russet -brown, or a mixture of 

 both colore, more or less confluent, with marked variations in this resjiect. 



Turdus swainsoni, var. ustulatus, Nuttall. 



OBEOOH THBUSH. 



Tttrdm ^istulntus, XrrrALL, Man. I, 1840, 400 (Columbia River). — Baihd, Binls N. Am. 

 1858. 215, pi. Ixxxi, fig. 1. — Ib. Kev. Am. B. 1864, 18. — Cooper & Suokley, 

 P. R. Rep. XII, II, 1860, 171. — Ridgway, Pr. A. N. S. Philad. 1869, 127. — 

 Dall & Banxistek, Tr. Chic. Acad. — Cooper, Birds Cal., 5, 



Sp. Char. General appearance of fnscesrens, but with pattern of sicainsoni ; the bufl* 

 orbital ring as conspicuous as in latter. Tlie olive above is more brown than in this, and 

 less yellowish than in fiuscescens, becoming decidedly more rufescent on wings and less 

 observably so on tail. Pectoral aspect difterent from fuacescens, the spots narrower and 

 cuneate, sharply defined, and arranged in longitudinal series ; In color they are a little 

 darker than the crown. Length, 7.50; wing, 3.75; tail, 3.00; tarsus, 1.12. 



Had. Pacific Province of United States. Tres Marias Isl., Guatemala (winter), 

 Mus. S. I. 



Tliis well-marked race is to l)e compared with sirainsoni, not with 

 fi(scesc€)is, as has generally been done ; the latter, except in shade of 

 colors, it scarcely resembles at all ; still greater evidence that such is its 

 aflinity is that the T. ustulatus builds its nest on a tree, and lays a spotted 

 eg'^, like swainsoni, while fuscescens nests on or near the ground, perhaps 

 never in a tree, and lays a plain blue e^^g. The song of the present bird is 

 also scarcely distinguishable from that of swainsoni. Upon the whole, we 

 see no reason why this should not be considered as a Pacific Province form 

 of the Turdus swainsoni; at least it becomes necessary to do so, after 

 I'eferring to T. pallasi, as geographical races, the T. auduhoni and T. nanus. 



Habits. So far as we are aware, this thrush has a very limited distribu- 

 tion, being mainly restricted to the Pacific coast region from California to 

 Alaska in the breeding season, though migrating southward in winter to 

 Guatemala. Dr. Kennerly found it in great abundance breeding at Chilo- 

 weyuck Depot, July 3, 1859. Dr. Cooper also found it one of the most 

 abundant of the summer residents in Washington Territory, arriving there 



