THE RING-OUZEL. 415 



First ivinter and summer. Female. Like adult female, but 

 gorget less distinct and often scarcely distinguishable from rest 

 of under -parts especially in winter ; some unmoulted juvenile 

 greater coverts usually with whitish mesial mark at tip as in male. 



Measurements and structure. Q wing 139-145 mm., tail 101-110, 

 tarsus 33-35.5, bill from skull 23-25 (12 measured). <j> wing 135-144. 

 Primaries : 1st 11-17 mm. shorter than primary -coverts, 3rd 

 longest, 4th sometimes as long, usually 1-2 shorter, 2nd 4-8 shorter, 

 5th 5-9 shorter, 6th 18-22 shorter ; 3rd to 5th emarginated outer 

 webs. Outermost tail-feathers 6-10 mm. shorter than rest, 12 

 feathers. Other structure as in White's Thrush. 



Soft parts. Bill mostly yellow with tips and ridge of culmen 

 brown-black (more yellow in summer than winter and in adult 

 males than in females and first winter birds) ; legs and feet brown ; 

 iris dark brown. 



CHARACTERS AND ALLIED FORMS. For differences of T. t. alpestris 

 see under that form ; T. t. orientalis (Caucasus, Transcaspia) is like 

 T. t. torquatus on under-parts but has much more white on edgings 

 of wing -feathers and greater coverts. Gorget distinguishes Ring- 

 Ouzel from other Thrushes except in juvenile which is darker and 

 less buff on under-parts than Blackbird, creamy on wings, and 

 has different wing -formula. 



FIELD-CHARACTERS. Except, on migration restricted to moorland 

 districts and mountain ranges. Elevates tail on alighting, like 

 Blackbird, but old birds differ from Blackbird and all other native 

 Thrushes in having broad white or whitish gorget. White edging 

 to feathers, especially in young, gives plumage greyish cast. Fear- 

 less in defence of nest, will strike head of an intruder with wings, 

 and attacks Crows and Buzzards. Alarm-note a loud, hard " tac, 

 tac, tac." Song lacks mellow fluting of Blackbird's, and in June 

 declines to a clear piping note repeated three or four times. 



BREEDING-HABITS. Haunts moorlands, building among heather- 

 grown banks of water-courses, or by side of moorland tracks, and 

 in rocky ravines. Nest. Chiefly built of coarse grasses, with a 

 few heather twigs and earth in foundation, and lined with fine dry 

 grasses. Eggs. Normally 4, occasionally 5 or 3 only, and rarely 

 6, resembling the more boldly marked types of Blackbird's eggs, 

 sparsely blotched with dark red-brown and showing a good deal of 

 bluish -green ground. A scarce variety has a decided blue ground 

 with few markings. Average of 100 British eggs, 30.3x21.5 mm. 

 Breeding-season. From last week April though May and even to 

 July : double-brooded. Incubation. By both sexes (A. Taylor) ; 

 period not definitely recorded. 



FOOD. Berries (bilberry, crowberry, rowan, hawthorn, ivy, etc.) 

 and fruit (raspberry, cherry, gooseberry, blackberry, currant, plum, 



