THRUSHES. 169 



attracted to the surface, to escape the approach of what the 

 poor worm thought might be his underground enemy, the mole. 

 But to return to the young Throstles in the shed. In this 

 case the food was not worms, but snails. The old ones 

 brought them in their shells, from which they cleared them, 

 by breaking the shell with a smart knock on the tooth of the 

 harrow, catching the snail, without, in one instance, letting it 

 fall. They now and then varied the feast with a few worms, 

 and occasionally with butterflies and moths. As is usual with 

 almost all birds, the old ones were invariably seen to carry 

 away the dung of the young birds, which might otherwise, by 

 its accumulation, be a great inconvenience. They would, 

 however, be unable to do this, were it not for a curious natural 

 precaution, namely, that the dung of young birds is voided 

 in a thin tenacious bladder or bag, which can be removed 

 without breaking. As the young grew, and required greater 

 supplies, the entrance and retreat of the old ones through the 

 door was so rapid, that it could scarcely be seen, but was only 

 known by the sound, as they darted over the heads of the 

 men; another proof of the rapidity of flight, of even the 

 slower flying birds, when urged by necessity. 



The above fact of Thrushes feeding on shell-fish, has 

 been corroborated by the observations of a naturalist, who, 

 on the shores of the Hebrides, on the western coast of 

 Scotland, found small heaps of shells belonging to two par- 

 ticular species, whelks and periwinkles, always broken, but 

 without the animal, although many appeared quite fresh. On 

 frightening away a Throstle, which he had seen engaged in 

 breaking something which it held in its beak against a stone, 

 he found one of the small heaps of whelks, among which was 

 a fresh one, newly broken, and containing the animal. As 

 the shell of the whelk and periwinkle is much harder than 

 that of the common snail, it was a matter of considerable 

 surprise how so tender an instrument as the beak of a Thrush 

 could accomplish it, but we see in the above case that the 

 bird was instinctively taught to avail itself of a power which 

 accident placed within its reach. 



Here we have a curious instance of a Thrush's confidence 



