42 ROBIN 



bright day after the middle of February we may hear 

 his glad prophecy of spring. He has a soft contralto 

 voice, exquisitely sweet, and " the very soul of ten- 

 derness." His song is broken into short phrases, 

 often given on the wing. 



Bluebirds are among the earliest birds to build, 

 and need but little encouragement to put their sum- 

 mer home near ours. A small box with a hole in it, 

 set up on a post, pleases them as well as an elaborate 

 bird-house, and a Bluebird family will sensibly dimin- 

 ish the numbers of caterpillars, spiders, beetles and 

 grasshoppers in the vicinity. They also build in holes 

 in trees, stumps or fence posts, stuffing in, rather 

 carelessly, dried grasses and feathers. The eggs, 

 4 to 6, are light blue, unmarked. 



American Robin: Merula migratoria. 



Length ' 10 inches. 



Upper parts dark brownish-gray; head and tail black, the 

 outer tail-feathers tipped with white. 



Lower parts chestnut-red; throat white, streaked with 

 black. 



Resident all the year, uncommon in summer. 



While the Robin is not common here in nesting 

 time, he is abundant in spring and fall migration, and 

 is sometimes found' in winter in sheltered places. In 

 April and May, or even in March, he may be seen 

 in the Smithsonian grounds running over the grass 

 in search of grubs and angle worms. 



The friendliness of the Robin, and his joyous swing- 

 ing song have made him universally loved wherever 

 he nests, but in the south, where he winters in great 

 flocks and seldom sings, he is considered too often 



