THE OVEX-BIRD. 



395 



summer inhabitant of tlie eastern United States, breeding- abundantly in all. 

 It arrives in Xew England and its latitude from the south about the last 

 week in April or first in ]May, and soon connnences building. The birds 

 arc not often paired on their arrival, and many are the little rpiarrels and 

 battles that occur between two or three males for the possession of one of 

 the opposite sex. The birds both work diligently in the construction of the 

 nest, which is a model of neatness and ingenuity. It is built on the ground 

 in the woods, usually in a dry situation. The materials used are dry leaves 

 and grasses ; these are arranged compactly together, and built over at the 

 top, the entrance being on the side, like an old-fasliioncd oven ; hence the 

 familiar name of the " Ovcn-l/ird." The nest is usually placed in a slight 

 hollow in the earth, scratched by the birds, and is lined with soft grasses 

 and hairs. The eggs are from three to five in number, usually four. They 

 are of a delicate creamy-white color, and spotted irregidarly with different 

 shades of reddish-brown ; and some specimens have a number of spots of 

 obscure lilac color. The markings arc usually thickest at the larger end 

 of the egg, where they are often confiuent, and cover the primary color. 

 Dimensions of eggs average about .79 by .G4 inch. 



The Golden-crowned Thrush is seldom found in any but the most retired 

 and thickly wooded localities, and it generally prefers the neighborhood of a 

 swamp for its home. Its song is a peculiar one, and easily rect)gnizc(l. It 

 consists of the repeated utterance of the syllables, <jiu-cha, qul-clia, qai-clm, 

 qui-chd, qut-chu, begun at first very low, and rapidly increasing in volume. 

 We have heard this song, in the mating and incubating seasons, at all hours 

 of the night. The bird seems, at that time, to ascend into the air to a con- 

 siderable height, and utters its notes while hovering and slowlv descending. 

 We have noticed the same habit in the ^Maryland Yellow-throat and some 

 other birds ; and suppose that it is owing to, and to sh(.iw, his great affection 

 for his mate, and to anxiety fir the success of her labors. 



A^'hen on the ground, the Oven-bird runs with great rapidity, frequently 

 jetting its tail, and uttering its sharp alarm-note. If the nest is approached, 

 the male throws himself in the way of the intruder, and endeavors to draw 

 him from its vicinity, scolding all the time with the greatest vehemence. 

 If the female is driven from her domicile, she suddenly flutters along the 

 ground, her wings extended, counterfeiting lameness in a very natural and 

 generally effective manner. 



This species, in consequence of its eminently terrestrial habits, often falls 

 a victim to snakes and skunks. We have repeatedly found nests, and left 

 them, in order that we might acquaint ourselves with the breeding peculiari- 

 ties of the bird ; and in a day or two, on paying it a second visit, found that 

 a skunk or other depredator had destroyed the whole fomily. 



