THE ALICE'S THRUSH. 



( Tardus aliciae.) 



Alice's Thrush, or the Gray-cheeked 

 Thrush, has an extensive range covering 

 the whole of North America from the 

 Atlantic coast westward to the Plains 

 and northward to the regions beyond the 

 Arctic Circle and is abundant along the 

 Arctic Coast. Mr. Ridgway says : "This 

 bird and the robin are the only species 

 of our thrushes that cross the Arctic 

 Circle to any distance, or reach the 

 shores of the Arctic Ocean. It occurs 

 from Labrador all around the American 

 Coast to the Alutian Islands." It also 

 frequents Siberia. From its breeding 

 grounds in northern North America, on 

 the approach of winter, it migrates 

 southward to Central America, and 

 finally reaches Costa Rica. 



Alice's Thrush closely resembles the 

 olive-backed thrush with which it is fre- 

 quently associated during its migrations. 

 When thus associated, only the trained 

 eye of an expert can discriminate be- 

 tween them. The two may be distin- 

 guished, however, by the much strong- 

 er buff coloring on the throat and breast, 

 and on the sides of the head around the 

 eyes, of the olive-backed species. 



Alice's Thrush is a shy bird during 

 the nesting period and remains within 

 the friendly shelter of thickets and 

 though unseen "their low sweet song 

 is frequently heard." Mr. Ridgway 

 says : "The notes are said to be quite 

 distinctive, the song being most like 

 that of the hermit thrush, 'but differs in 

 being its exact inverse,' beginning with 

 its highest and concluding with its low- 

 est notes, instead of the reverse." How- 

 ever, when their family cares are over, 

 their retiring nature disappears to a 

 great . extent and they seem to seek a 

 closer association with the habitation 

 of man and frequent more open places 

 in the vicinity of villages. In his report 

 on 'The Birds of Alaska," Mr. E. W. 

 Nelson says that during the period fol- 

 lowing the breeding season and before 



the migration begins, "many are killed 

 by the native boys, armed with their 

 bows and arrows. Their skins are re- 

 moved and hung in rows or bunches to 

 dry in the smoky huts and are preserved 

 as trophies of the young hunter's prow- 

 ess. In the winter festivals, when the 

 older hunters bring out the trophies of 

 their skill, the boys proudly display the 

 skins of these thrushes and hang them 

 alongside." 



So closely does this bird resemble 

 some of its sister thrushes that it was 

 not until the year 1858 that its distinc- 

 tive characteristics were recognized and 

 it was given a name of its own. In that 

 year it was described from specimens 

 collected in southern Illinois by the 

 eminent naturalist Robert Kennicott and 

 his sister Alice. 



For many years it was considered a 

 rare bird, for in its typical form it is- 

 only a migrant in the United States, si- 

 lently winging its way through the for- 

 ests to and from its sumrper home. 



Its nests are usually placed in shrubs 

 or low branching trees at a height of 

 but two to seven feet from the ground 

 and in a few instances it has been known 

 to nest on the ground. The nest is usu- 

 ally compact and "composed of an elab- 

 orate interweaving of fine sedges, leaves, 

 stems, dry grasses, strips of fine bark 

 and lined with fine grass. Occasionally 

 nests are constructed with mud, like 

 those of the common robin." It is said 

 that this thrush will easily modify its 

 nesting habits to suit the requirements 

 of -its environment. In the land of the 

 deer, nests have been found that were 

 wholly constructed of hair and lined 

 with the hair of deer, feathers and some 

 moss. 



In our illustration is shown its habit 

 of scratching away the dead leaves that 

 accumulate under the trees, in its search 

 for grubs and worms. 



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