THE SINGING BIRDS. 211 



THE RING OUZEL, OR RING THRUSH. 



The Ring Ouzel, or Ring Thrush (Turdus torquatus), is ten inches long and sixteen broad, 

 the wing measures five and a half, and the tail more than four inches. The plumage of the male, 

 with the exception of a broad, crescent-shaped, white spot upon the breast, is of a pure black, marked 

 with faint crescent-shaped spots, formed by the light edges of the feathers ; the quills and wing-covers 

 are shaded with grey, and bordered with brownish grey ; the tail is of an uniform brownish black, 

 with the exception of its two exterior feathers, which are surrounded by a delicate line of greyish 

 white. The female is greyer than her mate ; all the borders to the feathers are broader ; moreover, 

 the crescent on her breast is only slightly indicated, and of a dull grey hue. The feathers upon the 

 back of the young bird are dark, with a light edge, and partially streaked with light reddish yellow 

 on the shafts ; the throat is pale reddish yellow, spotted with a deeper shade ; the breast, which is of a 

 reddish hue, is marked with round spots, whilst those upon the greyish yellow belly are crescent-shaped. 

 The eye is brown, the base of the lower mandible reddish yellow, the rest of the beak black ; the foot 

 is blackish brown. The Ring Thrush principally frequents the highest mountain ranges of Europe, 

 but it is met with throughout the highland countries during its migrations, and often wanders as far 

 as the Atlas Mountains. This species has been classed by some ornithologists as the representative 

 of a separate group, under the name of Thoracocinela, but, in our own opinion, it can only be 

 regarded as a connecting link between the Thrushes and Blackbirds. (The egg of the Ring Ouzel is 

 represented in Fig. 15, Coloured Plate XVI.) 



This species arrives in Great Britain about April, and is not common. Mr. Mudie informs us 

 that cold moors, stony places, where a good deal of water falls, and where there are springs and lakes, 

 are the nesting ground of the Ring Ouzel. When startled by anyone coming suddenly upon them, 

 they utter the same alarm-note as the Blackbird. Their short sweet song resembles that of the 

 Missel Thrush, and is given forth from some low rock, or elevated stone. The nest varies a little 

 with the situation. A plant or bush, especially if against a bank, usually has the preference ; but a 

 tuft of grass or heath, or even the projecting part of a massy stone, is often employed. The nest is 

 formed of moss and lichen, plastered with mud, and lined with dry soft grass. The eggs are four, 

 rarely six in number, about the size of those of the Blackbird, but rather greener in tint, and the spots 

 more decidedly marked. 



THE BLACKBIRD. 



The Blackbird, Black Thrush, or Merle {Tardus merula), differs from the species above 

 described in the comparative shortness of its blunt-shaped wings (in which the third, fourth, and fifth 

 quills are nearly of equal length), and still more decidedly in its mode of life. Its length varies from 

 nine and three-quarters to ten inches, and its breadth from thirteen and a half to fourteen inches ; the 

 wing measures from four inches and one-third to four and a half, and the tail four and a half inches. 

 The plumage of the adult male is of an uniform black, the eye brown, the beak and edges of the 

 eyelid bright yellow, and the legs dark brown ; in the adult female the upper part of the body is pure 

 black, the under side blackish grey, edged with light grey ; the throat and upper part of the breast are 

 greyish black, but spotted with white and rust-red ; the young are blackish brown upon the back, 

 spotted with yellow upon the shafts, and rust-red, spotted with brown on the under side. 



The Blackbird is met with extensively from sixty-six degrees north latitude throughout the 

 whole of Southern Europe, and is a permanent resident in Great Britain. Everywhere it frequents 

 moist and well-wooded districts or tracts of underwood, usually remaining from year's end to year's 

 end within the limits of its native land. Only such as reside in the extreme north of the continent 

 migrate, and then rarely beyond the southern parts of Sweden. "T^e Blackbirds," says Mr. Yarrell, 



