TURDUS 17 



White's Thrush is said to obtain its food on the ground, 

 and feeds exclusively on insects when such are obtainable. 

 Its note is loud and sibilous, and, according to Godlewski, 

 it utters, when perched on a branch, at long intervals, a 

 melancholy whistle, very difficult to describe. Swinhoe de- 

 scribes it as being shy and solitary in its habits, and its 

 flight as low and undulating. It breeds in Eastern Siberia, 

 northern China, and Japan, but fully authenticated eggs have 

 as yet not been obtained, though eggs said to be those of this 

 species, all differing from each other, have been sent from three 

 sources. So far as I can judge, that figured by Prof. Newton 

 (ut supra) received through Canon Tristram from Prof. Ijima 

 of Tokio, is most probably authentic. 



20. BLACKBIRD. 

 TURDUS MERULA, 



Turdus merula, Linn. Syst. Nat. i. p. 295 (1766) ; Naumann, ii. p. 326 r 

 Taf. 71 ; Hewitson, i. p. 91, pi. xxv. figs. 1, 2 ; Newton, i. p. 280 ; 

 Dresser, ii. p. 91, pi. 13 ; Seebohm, Cat. B. Br. Mus. v. p. 235 ; 

 Saunders, p. 13 ; Lilford, iii. p. 92, pi. 46. Merula maxima, See- 

 bohm, torn. cit. p. 405 (1881). 



Merle noir, French ; Merol-preto, Portug. ; Mirlo, Span. ; Merlo 

 comune, Ital. ; Schwarz-Drossel, German ; Zwarte Lijster, Dutch ; 

 Sort-Drossel, Dan. ; Solsort, Norweg. ; Koltrast, Swed. ; Musto- 

 rastas, Finn. ; Tscherny-Drozd, Russ. 



<J ad. (England). Entire plumage glossy black ; bill orange ; legs ami 

 feet brown, the soles yellow ; iris brown ; eyelids yellow. Culmen 1*05, 

 wing 4'8, tail 4'4, tarsus 1*35 inch. The female has the upper parts dark 

 olivaceous brown, the throat and sides of neck greyish white, spotted and 

 streaked with dark brown ; upper breast reddish brown, mottled with dark 

 brown ; rest of under parts greyish, the flanks washed with brown ; the 

 bill brown. The young bird has the upper parts brown, streaked with 

 fulvous, the lower back and rump washed with rufous, the underparts pale 

 or orange rufous barred and spotted with brown. 



Hob. Europe generally, mostly resident, of accidental occur- 

 rence as far north as Iceland and Jan Mayen Island; the 

 Azores, Canaries, and Madeira ; in Asia as far east as Persia, 

 Afghanistan, Turkestan, and Kashmir ; North Africa. 



Frequents woods, groves and gardens, and feeds on slugs,, 

 snails, worms, insects, berries, and fruit ; its flight except in the 



