^72 



THE MISSEL THRUSH. 



The materials of which the nest is composed are generally dried 

 weeds aud very slender twigs as a foundation ; straw, hay, wool, dried 

 leaves, and moss as the main wall ; and fine vegetable fibres as the 

 linino". The eggs are four or five in number, and there are often two 

 broods in the course of the year. The color of the eggs is greenish 

 blue spotted with amber-brown. 



The first example of the true Thrushes is the Missel Thrush, one of 

 tlie largest and handsomest of the species. 



It is one of our resident birds, and on account of its great size, its 

 cojnbative nature, its brightly-feathered breast, its rich voice and gre- 

 ^^^„_ garious habits, is one of 



i^ ^"? -"'^ ^^^^ ^^^^ known of tbe 



^'-^^•^ British birds. About the 



beginning of April the 

 Missel Thrush sets about 

 its nest, and in general 

 builds a large weighty 

 edifice that can be seen 

 through the leafless 

 bushes from a great dis- 

 tance. 



The materials of which 

 the nest is composed are 

 the most heterogeneous 

 that can be imagined. 

 Every substance that can be woven into a nest is pressed into the ser- 

 vice. Moss, hay, straw, dead leaves, and grasses are among the ruling 

 substances that are employed for the purpose, and the bird often adds 

 inanufiictured products, such as scraps of rag, paper, or shavings. I 

 once found one of these nests that was ingeniously placed in the crown 

 of an old hat which had evidently been flung into the tree by some 

 traveller. At first it hardly looked like a nest, but there were a few 

 bits of grass lying over the brim that had a very suspicious aspect, 

 »iid on climbing the tree the old hat was proved to have been made 

 the basis of a warm nest, with the proper complement of eggs. 



Toward the end of the summer the Missel Thrushes assemble in flocks 

 of considerable size, and in the autumn often do great harm to gardens 

 and plantations by devouring the fruit. They are particularly fond of 

 ra8p])erries and cherries, and have been known to entirely ruin the crop 

 of these fruits. They are also fond of the berries of the mountain-ash 

 and the arbutus, and are so partial to the viscid berries of the mistletoe 

 plant that they have been called by its name. Insects of various kinds, 

 caterpillars, and spiders also form part of the Missel Thrush's diet, and a 

 partly-digested lizard has been found in the interior of one of these birds. 



The Missel Thrush (Turdus viscivorus). 



