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Mr. Hubert D. Astlky,



“A harbinger indeed, it is the first bird to carol from the

“ tree-tops the near arrival of spring. The song, though simple

“and modest, is not without effect at such a time in the suow-

“ covered, sadly silent landscape ; it fills desolate nature with in- .

“describably ioyous life and gives voice to man’s longing for the

“ warm, soft, and mild breezes of spring and the odour of opening

“flowers. The Robin’s manner of singing is significant.


“ While man)'- of our birds choose a concealed bushy spot

“ where they sing, and moreover accompany their song with lively

“ movements, the Robin selects an exposed spot, usually the top

“ of a tree and pours forth its song for hours from this lofty

“ perch.


“ It sits quietly with its bill directed to the sky, and sings

“ most earnestly and persistently early in the morning, as soon

“as the dawn appears in the east, and in the evening long after

“ the fading of the bright sunset.


“ Many students of bird-life, and even our great Audubon,


“ compare the Robin’s song to that of the European Blackbird, ;

“and maintain that the song of both birds is very similar.

“Judging from my own experience, which is confined to caged

“ Blackbirds, I would say that this is only conditionally true, viz.,


“ so far as the voice, the note itself, is concerned. Both birds,

“which are very near relatives, have a powerful and beautifully

“flute-like whistle, but the Blackbird’s song is more continuous,


“ more modulated ; the Robin’s briefer, more monotonous. The

“Blackbird is one of the very best and most superb of songsters,


“ and the comparison of the two birds shows that our Robin is to

“be classed with the finest of singers.”


The American Robin nests quite readily in an aviary, a

pair at our Zoological Gardens having done so twice during the

summer of 1908.


In their native country they are to be seen hopping about

in gardens, orchards, and meadows, in precisely the same fashion

as do our Black Ouzels (Blackbirds) in England. Their return

in the breaking forth of the springtime is to the New Englanders

much like the return of the Swallows and Cuckoos to us.


After the long severe winter, when the earth has been

snow-bound for many many weeks, one can picture the extreme



