THE MOCKING BIRD. 



559 



or bushes, the hen bird only participating in the labour of build- 

 ing. She lays from four to six eggs. 



In the South of Europe this species is much sought after, on 

 account of the exquisite flavour which its flesh acquires from 

 living on myrtle and juniper berries. 



The EiNG Blackbikd {Merula torquata, Gould) diflers from the 

 kind we have just noticed in being of larger size, and in the pre- 

 dilection which it shows for mountainous countries. It sings very 

 agreeably, and in France is found on the high summits of the 

 Vosges, the Alps, and the Pyrenees. 



The Solitary Blackbird {Merle Bleu of the French) is remark- 

 able for the deep blue colour of its plumage. It frequents the same 

 regions as the bird last described, and its habits are nearly the 

 same ; but it is wilder in its nature, and its song is even still more 



Fig. 261. — The Mocking Bii'd, or Polyglot Tlu-ush [Mimus poli/glottus, Briss.). 



charming. "We read in the chronicles of his time that Francis I. 

 was never weary of listening to the strains of one he possessed. 

 This bird is common in the South of Europe and the whole of 

 the Levant, and when it is tamed acquires considerable value. 



Of all the various species of the Merulidce the one which is 

 unquestionably the most favoured, as regards its vocal qualities, 

 is the Mocking Bird, or Polyglot Thrush ( Turdus polyglottus, 

 Linn.), Fig. 261, a native of North America, and chiefly of the 



