160 FAMILIAR FEATURES OF THE ROADSIDE. 



Where the road enters the wild wood, just under 

 some frowning hill, there we may most likely hear, 

 and possibly we may be fortunate enough to see, one 

 of the greatest songsters of our country, if not the 

 greatest woodland singer in the world. I refer to 

 the hermit thrush, whose song once heard can never 

 be forgotten. It is a song which we will hear from 

 over the treetops, if the air is still at sunset, a whole 

 mile away. 



But I must first speak of the hermit's better- 

 known relative. The wood thrush {Turdus niusteli- 



nus) is rather a plain, tawny 

 brown bird with a promi- 

 nent white breast, striking- 

 ly spotted with pointed um- 

 ber-brown spots, a broad, flat 

 head, prominent eyes, and a 

 somewhat long bill. The brown 

 is deepest on the head and as- 

 sumes an olive tone toward the 

 wings and tail. The bill is 

 black- brown and the feet yel- 

 low brown. The characteristic, 

 strongly spotted breast of this 

 bird is sufScient for its identifi- 

 cation. The other thrushes are not nearly so well 

 marked, and it is well to bear in mind the differences 



The Wood Thrush. 



