I HE KING OUZEL. 351 



Blackbird, and in its gestures and general behaviour it bears a 

 strong resemblance to that bird. Its cry is Tdk I Its voice is 

 hoarse, hollow, and so weak, that a Redbreast can overpower 

 it, yet not disagreeable. It sings throughout the year, except 

 when moulting, and lives in confinement six or seven years. 



ADDITIONAL. Rock Ouzel, Ter Ouzel, Mountain Ouzel, 

 White-breasted Blackbird, Moor Blackbird, and Ringed Thrush, 

 are the several names applied to this bird, which is very similar 

 to the species last described in form and colour, from which, 

 however, it is readily distinguished by the brownish white patch 

 on the breast, which has been said to resemble a collar or ring ; 

 hence its name. MUDIE remarks, that " the pure white gorget 

 is always a characteristic of the mature males. The young males 

 have it reddish ; the old females clouded with brown and grey, 

 and in the young females it is barely visible." 



MACGILLIVRAY says that " the Ringed Thrush arrives in the 

 south of Scotland about the middle of April, and departs in the 

 beginning of October. It betakes itself at once to the open 

 hilly and mountainous tracts, where it prefers the shelter of the 

 juniper, furze, and heath bushes to that of woods or thickets. 

 Extremely shy and vigilant, it seldom permits a near approach, 

 but betakes itself to flight on the least alarm. Its manners, how- 

 ever, are very similar to those of the Blackbird ; and as I have 

 studied them with some attention, I am enabled to speak with 

 certainty respecting them. A few individuals are found here 

 and there among the Lammermoor and Pentland Hills, generally 

 in the vicinity of masses of furze and juniper ; and I have met 

 with the species in several other parts of Scotland, and even in 

 the island of Skye. Its flight is strong and direct, or with very 

 little undulation. When pursued, it generally flies at once to a 

 considerable distance, and it is only when you come near its nest 

 or young, that it ventures within shooting distance. Like the 

 Song Thrush, it conceals itself among the bushes, but is much 

 more easily put to flight. When alarmed, it utters a repetition 

 of strong clear notes, like those of the Blackbird, but louder ; and 

 its song consists of a few simple, loud, and mellow notes. The 

 nest, according to a person who informs me that he has several 

 times found it, is placed under the shelter of a furze or juniper 

 bush, or on the face of a rough bank, or among fragments of 

 rock. It is composed of coarse grass, plastered internally with 

 mud, and lined with fine grass. The eggs, from four to six, are 

 regularly ,oval, pale blueish green, freckled all over with pale 

 brown. The young, fully fledged, I have had from the Pentland 

 Hills on the 7th of June." 



According to HEWETSON, the Ring Ouzel sings sweetly ; SELBY 

 says, " clearly and powerfully, though the notes were few." 



