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 THE GOLDEN-CROWNED THRUSH. 



TURDUS AUROCAPILLUS, LaTH. 



PLATE CXLIII. Male and Female. 



It is difficult for me to conceive the reasons which have induced cer- 

 tain naturalists to remove this bird from the Thrushes, and place it in the 

 genus Sylvia. The habits of a bird certainly are as sure indications of 

 its nature, as the form of its bill or feet can be ; and while the latter 

 afford no good grounds for rejecting this species as a Thrush, the former 

 are decidedly favourable to its remaining where its discoverer placed it. 



The Golden-crowned Thrush nestles on the ground, where, certes, 

 the nest of no true Sylvia has ever been found, at least in America ; it 

 searches for food as much there as on the branches of trees ; and its young 

 follow it for nearly a week before they resort to the latter, although quite 

 able to fly. But differences of opinion, such as that occurring in the present 

 case, are of little interest to me, and cannot influence Nature, whom alone 

 I follow, in her arrangements. 



The notes of this bird are first heard in Louisiana, about the begin- 

 ning of March. Some individuals remain there all summer, but the 

 greater number proceed eastward, some going as far as Nova Scotia, while 

 others move towards the west. Over all this extent of country the species 

 is dispersed, and its breeding places are in the interior or along the margins 

 of shady woods watered by creeks and rivulets, and seldom visited by man, 

 it being of a shy and retiring disposition, so that its occurrence in the open 

 parts of the country is very rare. In places like these, it settles for the sea- 

 son, attunes its pipe to its simple lay, forms its nest, rears a brood or two, and 

 at the approach of winter, spreads its wings and returns to southern regions. 

 Perched erect on a low horizontal branch, or sometimes on a fallen 

 tree, it emits, at intervals of ten or fifteen minutes, a short succession of 

 simple notes, beginning with emphasis and gradually falling. This suf- 

 fices to inform the female that her lover is at hand, as watchful as he is 

 affectionate. The quieter the place of his abode, the more the little min- 

 strel exerts his powers ; and m calm evenings, its music immediately fol- 

 lowing the song of the Tawny Thrush, appears to form a pleasant unison. 

 The nest is so like an oven, that the children in many places call this 

 species the " Oven Bird." I have found it always on the ground, some- 



