174: MOCKINGBIRD. 



former is a petulant, whining, nasal tcha/y^ to me one of 

 the most disagreeable sounds in Nature, and so unlike 

 the bird's song that he seems possessed of a dual person- 

 ality. The Catbird's song, from a musical standpoint, is 

 excelled by that of few of our birds. His voice is full 

 and rich, his execution and phrasing are faultless ; but 

 the effect of his song, sweet and varied as it is, is marred 

 by the singer's too evident consciousness. 



The Catbird's relative, the Mockingbird, is an abun- 

 dant inhabitant of the southern United States from Yir- 



Mockingbird, ginia to California, and ranges south- 

 Mimus poiygiottos. ward into Mexico. In the Eastern 

 States it is not common north of south- 

 ern Illinois and Virginia, but in summer it is found in 

 small numbers as far north as Massachusetts, where a few 

 pairs breed each season. It is exceedingly domestic in 

 its habits, and in the South there are few suitable gar- 

 dens, either in the town or country, which are not inhab- 

 ited by a pair of Mockingbirds. 



The power of mimicry for which this bird is cele- 

 brated has, I think, been unduly exaggerated, and the 

 fact that its usual song contains several notes resembling 

 those of other species doubtless in part accounts for its 

 much overrated ability as a mimic. It is unnecessary, 

 however, for the Mockingbird to borrow the notes of other 

 birds, for his own song places him in the front rank of 

 our songsters. It is delivered with a spirit and animation 

 which add greatly to its attractiveness. The Mocking- 

 bird does not sing between moutnfuls, as do the Yireos, 

 or quietly from a perch, like the Towhee or Thrasher ; 

 he frequently changes his position, hopping from place 

 to place, making short nights, bounding into the air, and 

 displaying the white markings of his wings and tail, as 

 though it were impossible for him to give expression to 

 his emotion through the medium of voice alone. During 



