THE VEERY 



BY T. GILBERT PEARSON 



THE NATIONAL ASSOCIATION OF AUDUBON SOCIETIES 

 Educational Leaflet No. 87 



The Thrushes are rated very high as song-birds, and each has a song 

 so distinct in itself that once perfectly heard it need never be forgotten 

 nor confused with the song of any other. One of America's most 

 popular members of this family is the Tawny or Wilson's Thrush, 

 usually known as the Veery. It was called Wilson's Thrush by Prince 

 Lucien Bonaparte, who was a great admirer of Alexander Wilson, and 

 the editor of his "Ornithology." The name "Veery" is an imitation 

 of its ringing calls. To the novice in bird-study the various 



A VEERY MOTHER BROODING HER EGGS 



small Thrushes are somewhat confusing. The Veery has often been 

 mistaken for the Wood Thrush, despite the difference that the latter has 

 distinct rounded black spots on its breast, and the Veery has small and 

 somewhat indistinct arrow-shaped spots on its breast and sides. 



There is no mistaking the Veery's song, however. It is one of the 

 most melodious of the northern woodlands, and during the spring migra- 

 tion is frequently heard on still days in the forests and groves of the 

 South. It begins singing shortly after its arrival in May and usually 

 stops early in July. There have been many attempts to describe the 

 Veery's song, and numerous writers have tried to spell it out in words. 



