128 The Wilson Bulletin — No. 84. 



gained their weight more rapidly than the more mature 

 nestlings, but it has taken all the nestlings practically the same 

 length of time to produce pinfeathers, quills and feathers. 

 The two young birds that came from the egg last, gained their 

 pin feathers, quills, and feathers a few hours earlier than the 

 two that hatched first, I should say. Young Hermit Thrushes 

 develop their feathers in the same length of time that young 

 Olive-backed Thrushes do. 



All the young beg for food in the nest and out. 



The two older birds watch every movement of leaf or insect 

 around the nest and listen to every sound. They notice par- 

 ticularly the mother bird when she unfurls her wings and flies 

 away. They stretch frequently. Three of the young snapped 

 at a mosquito several times. No. 1 stood on the edge of the 

 nest a few seconds, walked a few steps, then hopped into the 

 nest ; the young clung to the nest lining with their sharp claws 

 when I attepmted to take them out. 



The end of the tenth day. The young Thrushes are large 

 beautiful birds ; at this stage a Thrush has flesh-colored legs 

 and feet, a brownish-gray beak, hazel eyes, the beginning of 

 an olive tail and olive wings, a golden mouth and throat lining, 

 an arrow-shaped tongue, and a very slender, V-shaped groove 

 in the top of the mouth ; this groove, edged with spines, ends 

 above a salivary gland at the base of the throat. The crown 

 and nape are olive-brown, spotted with bufify, the eye-ring 

 is bufify, the back is olive-brown with a bufify line down the 

 middle of each feather. A black line runs down each side of 

 the throat which is washed with buffy ; the breast and sides arc 

 washed with buffy, and the breast and white belly are spotted 

 with black. A young Hermit Thrush differs from a young 

 Olive-backed chiefly in having bright ciimamon tail coveiis. 



The birds exercise constantly, changing position, panting 

 with the heat, gaping, yawning, snapping at insects, stretch- 

 ing, preening, giving the food reaction, muting, standing to 

 strengthen the legs, and winnowing the air with the wings. 

 One hopped onto the edge of the nest, and then hopped back 

 into it asrain. 



