THE ULl'K K013IX. 



THE BLUE ROBIN. 



THIS merry harbinger of spring is always a welcome visitor, on account of his 

 many pleasing ways, pretty plumage, and delightful song. His first notes are heard 

 on the approach of spring. He is a well-known bird in all sections of the United 

 States, and is one of the first of the migratory birds which appear among us. He 

 is not a shy bird, and is a great friend to the farmer, who repays his usefulness in 

 killing the troublesome insects and bugs by allowing him full use of the orchards 

 and lands, and not permitting him to be molested. 



He commences his courtship as early as February ; and the female lays as many 

 as six eggs, and hatches two or three broods each season. The young birds at the 

 age of twenty-five days are fully colored out. The Blue Robin is about six inches 

 and a half in length, and the male is easily distinguished by the beautiful sky-blue 

 tint of the entire upper parts of the body. 



The throat, neck, and breast, and sides under the wings, are pale chestnut : the 

 belly is dusky brown. The female is distinguished by the paler shades all over the 

 body. 



The early song of the Bluebird is an agreeable, merry, oft-repeated warble, 

 which is extremely pleasing : it is uttered with outstretched, quivering wings, which 

 gives him a very interesting appearance. In the fall, as he is about to leave the 

 haunts he has loved so well, his song changes to a single melancholy note, which 

 seems to show how depressed he feels at leaving home. He resembles greatly in 

 manners the favorite Robin Redbreast of Great Britain. In Great Britain he is 

 known by the name of ;i Blue Nightingale ; " in Germany " The Cottage Singer," 

 owing to his love for building near country-houses. 



He is an expert at catching insects, and seems to delight in training his young 

 in the art. Blue Robins may be easily bred in confinement. As they are not shy 

 birds, all that is required is a roomy cage, and .materials for nest-building, which may 

 consist of old twigs, dried grasses, or old pieces of rope ; and, as they are very pro- 

 lific, a Mormon family is quickly acquired. All the zoological gardens of Europe 

 breed them so extensively, that there is no need of exporting them to supply the 

 demand. The Blue Robin's food is the prepared Mocking-bird food, with raw, 

 grated carrot, and insects or meal-worms, varying it occasionally with a little scraped, 

 raw beef. He is rather a voracious bird, and requires a large-sized cage, with plenty 

 of gravel, which should be frequently changed. He is very fond of the bath-tub, 

 and a bath is always looked forward to as a daily luxury. With careful attention he 

 will live for many years in confinement, and is naturally so tame he prefers taking 

 a dainty from the hand to having it mixed with the common food. 



His ailments are few, and are usually those which attack all soft-bill birds. 



