180 USEFUL BIRDS. 
Its alarm note is a loud smack or chick, very incisive, and 
frequently followed by a mournful whistle. It also makes a 
hissing or wheezing sound, which is often heard when it is 
defending its young. 
Fig. 59.— Brown Thrasher, one-half natural size. 
The Brown Thrasher feeds largely on insects. As it 
usually retires during the breeding season to scrubby lands 
or sprout growth near woodland, it takes very little culti- 
vated fruit, and the small amount of corn it consumes is 
usually more than made up for by the white grubs taken from 
