Mr. 11. Seebohm on the Ornithology of Siberia. 5 



impassable. The deep snow was in process of melting, and 

 too soft to bear the weight even when distributed over a pair 

 of snow-shoes each measuring 4 feet inches long and 10 

 inches wide. On some of the steeper slopes exposed to the 

 south small oases of bare ground were to be found. One of 

 these, close behind my quarters, thinly covered over with 

 bushes, was a very prolific hunting-ground for me during the 

 spring migration. On this piece of ground, on- the 7th of 

 June, I had the pleasure of shooting my first brace of Dark 

 Thrushes (the Turdus pollens of Pallas, but not the Turdus 

 pallidus of Gmelin) . A couple of days afterwards I shot two 

 more on the same ground. As soon as the forests were pass- 

 able I made daily rambles, and almost always heard the song 

 of this bird. Turdus dubius had gone further north to breed ; 

 but this species was evidently stopping and making prepa- 

 rations to build its nest. This Thrush is a very poor songster, 

 but he has a splendid voice. He warbles two or three clear 

 rich notes, as mellow as those of a blackbird. He stops ; his 

 song is finished; and you hear no more for a minute, when 

 the same brilliant prelude is repeated. On the 27th of June 

 I had the good luck to take the nest of this bird. It was 

 placed upon a horizontal branch of a somewhat slender spruce, 

 about fifteen feet from the ground. The female flew off as 

 I approached the tree. I shot her, and soon had the nest 

 with five eggs in my hand. The nest is carefully made, neatly 

 lined with mud and afterwards with dry grass. The eggs 

 resemble small but richly marked Blackbird's eggs. I did 

 not meet with this interesting Thrush further north than the 

 Arctic circle ; but on my return journey, in lat. 66, on the 

 3rd of August (and afterwards in lat 63, on the 6th of 

 August), I shot the young in first plumage, with spotted 

 backs and spotted breasts. One of these skins will be figured 

 in Dresser's ' Birds of Europe/ 



TURDUS SIBIRICUS, Pallas. 



Whilst the remains of the ice were still straggling down 

 the Ycn-e-say' I occasionally caught a hasty glance at a 

 dark-coloured Thrush with a very conspicuous white eyebrow ; 



