70 BIRDS OF SOMERSETSHIRE. 



the under parts are a lighter olive-brown than the 

 back. 



The young have the upper parts brown, each 

 feather having a central streak of pale rufous- 

 brown ; under parts light rufous-brown, each feather 

 tipped with dusky brown, more distinctly so in the 

 males. 



Varieties of the Blackbird are of common occur- 

 rence, the most general being more or less pied with 

 white. I have one in my own collection whitish 

 under the throat, which is the most usual variety, 

 but in this case the white is slightly tipped with 

 pink. 



The eggs are of a light greenish colour as to the 

 ground, much speckled with brown and reddish 

 brown, but they vary considerably. 



RING OUZEL, Turdus torquatus. The Eing Ouzel, 

 or " Mountain Colley," as it is usually called in the 

 parts about here, is a very scarce bird in this imme- 

 diate neighbourhood, but is more numerous in the 

 wild country towards Dulverton, where it breeds 

 regularly. It is a migratory species, arriving in 

 England in April and leaving in October, about 

 which latter time it is most numerous, appearing in 

 some places in small flocks previous to its autumnal 

 migration, which has given rise to another local 

 name, that of " Michaelmas Blackbird." A stray 

 bird is occasionally seen on the Quantocks, but on 

 those hills it is decidedly of rare occurrence. 



