MOCKING BIRD (Mimus polyglottos) BROWN THRASHER (Toxostoma rufum) 



Li-'iii^(h, 10 inches. Most easily distinguisliotl 

 fnini the similarly colored loggerhead shrike 

 (see p. 679) by the absence of a conspicuous 

 black stripe through the eye. 



Range : Resident from southern ]\[e.xico 

 north to California, \\''.\"oming. Iowa, Ohio, and 

 Maryland; casual farther north. 



Habits and economic status ; Because of its 

 incomparable medleys and imitative powers, 

 the mocking bird is the most renowned singer 

 of the Western Hemisphere. Even in confine- 

 ment il is a masterly performer, and formerly 

 thousands were trapped and sold for cage 

 birds ; but this reprehensible practice has been 

 largely stopped by protective laws. It is not 

 surprising, therefore, that the mocking bird 

 should reccixe protection principally because 

 of its ability as a songster and its preference 

 for the vicinity of dwellings. Its place in the 

 affections of the South is similar to that occu- 

 pied by the robin in the North. It is well that 

 this is true, for the bird appears not to earn 

 protection from a strictly economic stand- 

 point. About half of its diet consists of fruit, 

 and many cultivated varieties are attacked, 

 such as oranges, grapes, figs, strawberries, 

 blackberries, and raspberries. Somewhat less 

 than a fourth of the food is animal matter, 

 and grasshoppers are the largest single ele- 

 ment. The bird is fond of cotton worms, and 

 is known to feed also on the chinch-bug, rice 

 \\ee\"il. and bolhvorm. 



Length, aliout 11 inches. Pjrnwnish red 

 above, heavily streaked with black below. 



Range : Breeds from the Gulf States to 

 southern Canada and west to Colorado, Wyo- 

 ming, and i\Iontana ; winters in the southern 

 half (if the eastern L'nited States. 



Haliits and economic status: The brown 

 thrasher is more retiring than either the mock- 

 ing bird or catbird, but like them is a splendid 

 singer. Not infreciuently indeed its song is 

 taken for that of its more famed cousin, the 

 mocking bird. It is partial to thickets and gets 

 much of its food from the ground. Its searcli 

 for this is usually accompanied by nnich 

 scratchin.g and scattering of leaves; wdience its 

 common name. Its call note is ,a sharp sound 

 like the smacking of lips, which is useful in 

 identifying this long-tailed, thicket-haunting 

 bird, which does not much relish close scrutiny. 

 The brown thrasher is not so fond of fruit as 

 the catbird and mocker, but devours a much 

 larger percentage of animal food. Beetles 

 form one-half of the animal food, grasshop- 

 pers and crickets one-fifth, caterpillars, includ- 

 ing cutworms, somewhat less than one-fifth, 

 and bugs, spiders, and millepeds comprise most 

 of the remainder. I!y its destruction of these 

 and other insects, which constitute more than 

 60 per cent of its food, the thrasher much 

 more than compensates for that portion (about 

 one-tenth) of its diet derived from cultivated 

 crops. 



Photosraph by L. W. Erownell 



ilothiir is taking no ciianci's uf tj'.ltixg iiivk little one spill on its clean 

 dress: a brown tiikasiter feeding its young 



43 



