312 BIRDS OF NORTH CAROLINA 



It is a shy, retiring bird, with a fine voice, but is so unobtrusive in its habits 

 that the song is often credited by the uninformed to its cousin, the Mockingbird. 



The nest is built in thick cover usually near the ground; once we found one on 

 the third rail from the top of an old worm-fence. It is constructed of twigs, weed 

 stems, and dead leaves, and is usually lined with roots. The eggs are laid from 

 late April to early July, and are three or four in number. They have a whitish, 

 pale buff, or pale greenish ground-color, thickly speckled all over with minute 

 specks of reddish brown. Size 1.08 x .80. 



FIG. 255. BROWN THRASHER. 



One curious habit of this bird is to scratch or rake among dead leaves with its 

 bill, which it uses effectively, tossing the leaves about in merry mood while search- 

 ing for insects. 



54. FAMILY TROGLODYTID>E. WRENS 



This is a family of small birds, with plain color and nervous activity. Some 

 of them show a strong liking for the vicinity of human habitations, while others 

 prefer to dwell in dense woods or swamps. 



KEY TO GENERA 



1. Back without streaks. See 2. 



1. Back streaked with black and white. Marsh Wrens. See 5. 



2. No distinct superciliary stripe See 3. 



2. A distinct white superciliary stripe. See 4. 



3. Tail more than three-fourths length of wing. Troglodytes. 



3. Tail very short, less than three-fourths length of wing. Nannus. 



4. Tail-feathers all brown, barred with darker. Thryothorus. 



4. Tail-feathers mostly black, tipped with whitish. Thryomanes. 



5. A white superciliary line. Telmatodytes. 

 5. No white superciliary line. Cistothorus. 



Except Telmatodytes, which has two and possibly three representatives in the 

 State, none of these genera is represented in eastern North America by more than 

 a single species. 



