420 A PRACTICAL HANDBOOK OF BRITISH BIRDS. 



Soft parts. Bill : male, adult, orange-yellow, 1st winter 

 blackish-horn in autumn, becoming marked with yellow towards 

 end of year and orange-yellow as adult by spring and sometimes 

 as early as January ; female, adult, dark brown usually with some 

 yellow marks, sometimes dull yellow with brown tip, rarely almost 

 as bright orange-yellow as adult male, first winter dark brown ; 

 legs and feet dark brown ; iris dark brown ; eyelids yellow. 



CHARACTERS AND ALLIED FORMS. T. m. hispanice (Spain) is said 

 to have comparatively shorter 3rd to 5th primaries ; T. m. cabrerce 

 (Madeira and western Canaries) has shorter wing and tail and 

 slenderer bill ; T. m. azorensis (Azores) like last but still shorter 

 tail, also rounder wing ; T. m. mauritanicus (southern N.W. Africa) 

 has long tail (110-120 mm.) and female has dark grey-brown under- 

 parts and usually yellow bill ; T. m. algirus (N.Algeria, N. Tunisia) 

 as last but with shorter wing; T.-m. aterrimus (S.E. Europe, Asia 

 Minor) female has paler under -parts and whiter throat ; T. m. syriacus 

 (Syria, south Persia) male is more slate-black and female more 

 grey-brown, less rufous on breast and only throat streaked ; 

 T. m. intermedium (Turkestan) like last but larger (<$ wing 132-140) ; 

 T. m. maximus (Kashmir) largest (^ wing 156-160). All these races 

 require careful comparison. Wing -formula of Blackbird differs 

 from other British Thrushes. 



FIELD-CHARACTERS. Male's orange bill and eyo-rim, and all-black 

 plumage, umber-brown in female and dark brown and spotted 

 in young, distinctive. Fussy and garrulous, especially at roosting- 

 time. Notes of alarm and defiance " quilp," a thrice repeated 

 "mink," and, in flight, a rattling cackle " tchuk, tchuk, tchuk." 

 Song lacks variety of Song -Thrush's, a mellow fluting, ending in a 

 discordant squeak. 



BREEDING-HABITS. Usually nests within a few feet of ground in 

 hedges, bushes, evergreens and ivy, occasionally in sheds, on ground, 

 or at a considerable height in trees. Nest. Not unlike that of 

 Thrush, but usually with more moss, solidified with mud and also 

 lined with it, but with an inner layer of dry grasses. Eggs. 4-5, 

 sometimes 3 only, and rarely 6, while 7 recorded twice. Ground 

 normally bluish-green, sometimes freckled with red-brown or more 

 or less boldly marked with red-brown and grey shell-marks. Mark- 

 ings at times form cap or zone and a black streak is not uncommon. 

 Ground-colour occasionally ranges to clear blue, sometimes without 

 markings and rare variety is white with red-brown spots. Average 

 of 80 British eggs, 29.4 X 21 .6 mm. Breeding-season. Begins 

 March, but is not general till April, and lasts till July as several 

 broods are reared. Incubation. By hen only as a rule, 13-14 

 days from last egg, 14-15 in incubator (Evans) ; 14 days (Ellison). 

 Fledging-period. 13-14 days (Brock). 



