XIX. BLACKBIED. 



(Turdus merula.) 



THIS drawing is from a caged bird. The Blackbird is common 

 here, but keeps mostly to the garden. It begins to sing in March, 

 and prefers doing so in an elevated situation the top of a tree, 

 or even on the roof of the house principally in the afternoon. 

 The female is brown and the young spotted brown ; neither have 

 the bright yellow bill of the cock. The Blackbird finds it a good 

 plan when in search of worms to stamp on the ground, which it 

 does energetically with both feet at a time. The worms, sup- 

 posing that a mole causes the earthquake, come to the surface. 

 I used to have a difficulty in distinguishing clearly between the 

 song of the Blackbird and the Thrush before I lived so much 

 among them, so I got a young Blackbird and kept it in a cage, 

 that I might know the song better, hoping to hear it " warble its 

 native wood-notes wild," but was disappointed ; it only made 

 feeble attempts to whistle a tune. Both Thrushes and Black- 

 birds come to the windows for food in winter. The Blackbird is 

 fierce and greedy, and drives away the smaller birds. 



43 



