THRUSHES-MOCKING-BIRD-ROBIN— DOVE. 



173 



Townsend's Fly-catching Thrush, or Solitair. (Myiadestes townsendii.) 



Fig. 18. 



Dr. J. S. Newberry has given a very interesting account of this 

 bird. Noticing its occurrence is the Des Chutes Basin, he con- 

 tinues : " It does not inhabit dense forests, nor prairies entirely 

 destitute of trees, but chooses surfaces covered with a scattered 

 growth of pine and cedar. We first met with it in the canon of 

 Mptolyas River, at the base of Mt. Jefferson. As we picked our 

 way with infinite difficulty down the side of this gorge, my atten- 

 tion was attracted by the delightful song of, to me, a new bird, of 

 which a few were sitting in the pines and cedars which, by a pre- 

 carious tenure, held a footing on the craggy face of the cliff The 

 song, so clear, full, and melodious, seemed that of a Mimus; of 

 the bird I could not see enough to judge of its affinities. The next 

 day we followed down the river in the bottom of the canon ; all 

 day the deep gorge was filled with a chorus of sweet sounds from 

 hundreds and thousands of these birds, which, from their monoto- 

 nous color, and their habit of sitting on the branch of a tree pro- 

 jecting into the void above the stream, or hanging from some beet- 

 ling crag, and flying out in narrow circles after insects, precisely 

 in the manner of Flycatchers, I was disposed to associate with 

 them. Two days afterward, in the canon of Psucseeque Creek, 

 of which the terraced banks were sparsely set with low trees of 

 the western cedar, I found these birds numerous, and had every 

 opportunity of hearing and seeing them, watching them for hours 

 while feeding and singing, and procuring specimens of both male 

 and female. With the first dawn of day they began their songs, 

 and at sunrise the valley was vocal with their notes. Never, any- 

 where, have I heard a more delightful chorus of bird-music. Their 

 song is not greatly varied, but all the notes are particularly clear 

 and sweet, and the stream of pure gushing melody is as spontan- 

 eous and inspiring as that of the Song Sparrow." 



Mountain Mocking-bird, or Mocker ; Sage Thrasher. (Oreossoptes mon- 



tanus.') 



Fig. 19. 



Tiis splendid singer makes his home in the Rocky Mountain 

 regions of the United States. Mr. Ridgeway carefully observed 

 the habits of this species and says, that it is a bird peculiar to the 

 artemisia wastes of the Great Basin, being a characteristic species 

 of the region between the Sierra Nevada and the Rocky Moun- 

 tains. It is exclusively an inhabitant of the " sage brush," and is 

 partial to the lower portions of the country, though it is not un- 

 frequent on the open slope of the mountains. A more unappro- 

 priate term than "Mountain Mocking-Bird " could hardly have 

 been chosen for this species, as its predilection for the valleys, and 

 the fact that its song is entirely its own will show. In his opinion 

 the term Sage Thrasher would be more appropriate. When sing- 

 ing the birds were generally seen sitting upon the summit of a 

 " sage " bush, faintly warbling, in the course of the song turning 

 the head from side to side in a watchful manner. Upon being ap- 

 proached, they would dart downward, seemingly diving into the 

 bush upon which they had been perched, but upon a close search 

 the bird could not be found, until it was heard again singing a 

 hundred yards or more in the direction from which I had ap- 

 proached. When the pairing season was at hand, the songs of the 

 males become greatly improved, increasing in sweetness and vivac- 

 ity, and full of rapturous emotion ; their manners also became 

 changed, for they have lost all their wariness. 



Hermit Thrush ; Rocky Mountain Hermit Thrush ; Audubon's Thrush. 



(Turdus fallasi, var. audubom.) 



Fig. 20. 



This bird is a Rocky Mountain variety of the typical species, re- 

 presented on Plate XXXVI, fig. 5, page 48. 



Cape St. Lucas Robin. {Turdus migratorius, var. confinis.') 



Fig. 31. 



A Cape St. Lucas variety of the typical bird, represented on 

 Plate LXVII, fig. 4, page 97. 



Wilson's Thrush ; Tawny Thrush ; Veery. (Turdus fuscesceus.) 



Fig. 32. 



Wilson's Thrush is our Eastern North American species, pass- 

 ing its winters in Florida and the West Indies, Central and South 

 America. According to Maynard, its note is uttered at irregular in- 

 tervals, sometimes loud, sometimes soft, and even changing in the 

 direction from which it comes. According to Ridgeway it is timid, 

 distrustful and retiring ; delighting in shady ravines, the edges of 

 thick close woods, and occasionally the more retired parts of gar- 

 dens ; where if unmolested, it will frequent the same locality year 

 after year. Their song consists of an inexpressibly delicate me- 

 tallic utterance of the syllables ta-weel' ah, ta-iveeV ah, tuil' ah, 

 tuil' ah, accompanied by a firm trill which renders it truly seduc- 

 tive. 



Oregon Thrush. ( Turdus swainsoni, var. ustulatus^) 



Fig. 23. 



This bird is a Pacific Coast variety of the typical species, figure 

 24, of this Plate. 



Swainson's Thrush; Olive-backed Thrush; Swamp Robin. 



swainsoni.) 



Fig. 24. 



(Turdus 



This species is met with over nearly the whole of North America, 

 and during the migrating time, which is usually in April and Oc- 

 tober, it is very abundant. Like other members of its family, it is 

 a good singer, resembling that of the Wood Thrush. According 

 to Ridgeway, its song of lamentation, when robbed of its young, is 

 full of indescribable pathos and beauty, haunting one who has 

 overheard it long after. The nest is usually placed in a low tree 

 or bush, and the eggs are blue, with numerous reddish spots. 



Zenaida Dove. (Zenaida amabilis.) 



Fig. 35. 



This rare species was obtained by Audubon, on the Florida Keys, 

 where it was a transient visitor. They are said by him to have 

 the habits of the Ground Dove. Their flight resembles them, and 

 is seldom higher than the tops of the mangroves, and never to any 

 considerable distance, except during their migrations. Though 

 they alight on trees with ease, and can walk well among their 

 branches, they spend the greater portion of their time on the 

 ground, and walk well there, walking or running in search of food 

 with lightness and celerity, and invariably roost on the ground. 



