TURDIILK — THE TllUrsilKS. 27 



own \vei;^lit beiuj^' consumed by the youui,' bird witliin twenty-lbur hours, 

 and, whiit is more, denionslnited to lie neecssiiry to its existence. 



In Massachusetts a tew Robins remain tlu'ou^diout tiie year, but tlie .greater 

 jirojiortion leave early in Xoveniber, returning late in February or early in 

 March. 



The song of the Hobin is deservedly popular. AVhile many of our birds 

 possess far .superior i)owers of melody, and exhibit a much greater variety in 

 their .song, there are none that exceed it in its duration or extent. It is tlu! 

 first bird in s])ring to oix-n and one of the last to close the great concert of 

 Nature. Their .song is earnest, sini])le, and thrilling, and is .said liy Audubon 

 to reseml)le that of the Kurojiean lllackhird. Turd us mcvtiln. 



Tiie liobin, wlien taken young, may l)e readily tamed, a.ul soon becomes 

 contented and accustomed to conlinement. They are devoted to their young, 

 watcld'ul, attentive, and provident. They begin to constru>'t their nest in 

 early spring bi.'fore the trees i)ut forth their leaves, and often in very exposed 

 ])osition.s. The size of the nest, in fact, makes concealment impossilde. 

 Tiicse nests are sometimes jilaced in ([uite remarkable positions, such as 

 the beams of a ship jiarlly tinislied, and where the carpenters were every 

 day at work, and similar situations indicating a great familiarity. Their 

 favorite ]ilace is the horizontal branch of an a]ii)le-tree, about ten feet from 

 the ground. 



The nest of the Robin is a large and coarsely constructed combination of 

 rude materials. It is comjxised of a bast^ of sti'aw, leaves, mo.s.ses, stems, 

 and dry gra.sses, upon which a cui)-sliai)ed fabric of clay or mud is liuilt. 

 The whole is lined with tiner dry grasses and vegetable iilires. They 

 average Ti inciios in iieigiit and the same in diameter. Their cavity is 

 '1\ inches deep, with a diameter of '11 inclies. 



The eggs of the Ivobin, wliicli are usually live and smnetimes six in num- 

 ber, are of a uniform bright greenish-bhu! color, liable to fade when ex]ios(Ml 

 to light, but when fresh exiiibiting a very distinct and bright tint. They 

 vary in size fnmi l.lio to l.l'J inches in length, and in breadth from .88 to 

 .To of an inch. Their mean measurement is 1.18 by .81. 



Turdus migratorius, var. conflnis, Daiuu. 



CAFE ST. LUCAS BOBIK. 



Tiiriliis rniiihiix, IJaumi, lirv. Am. it. lS(il, 20. — lii,i.ior, IJiitls Ainerkii. — Cmiria!, Itilds 

 ('ill., i). 



Sr. CiiAii. Xo. "Jli,"!^!'. Kiilii'c ii|i]M'i' |iiii'ls inul .-liili's dl' licail iiml neck \iiiilonii }.Tiiyi-;li- 

 iisli, willl |ii'l-|ii\|is n rnint liiifTi' nl' oliviiciMiiis, li'ss lliiui ill fjislciii s|i('ciiiii'lis ol' 7! iiiii/iii- 

 tiiriii.i. Till' ct'iilnil (iDrliiiiis ol' the rcullicis nl' llic l()|i iif licail uic riillicr cliirkiM' tli:\ii llu' 

 i'iti;i',-<, thoii(ih iiliiiiist iiiii|i|iici'iiilily so, iiinl not iiiipnrtiiif; a ^'i'ihtuI (lii>ky iip|icMriiiii'i'. 

 Tile (iliin mitl tlimal an' wliiti', stvcaki'il with asliy-lirowii. Tlic Jii^riiluiii ami Incasl an- 



