722 MICHIGAN BIRD LIFE. 
In spite of all that has been said and written about the song of the Her- 
mit Thrush the writer fails to discover any superiority over that regularly 
given by the Wood Thrush. We have heard the Hermit Thrush hundreds 
of times and in scores of places, and, making due allowance for time 
and place, the song in our opinion is neither clearer, purer, sweeter, more 
powerful or longer continued than that of the Wood Thrush. Individuals 
of either species sometimes excel the average musician of the other species, 
but we doubt that as a whole one can be said to be superior to the other. 
As already stated the nest is almost always placed on the ground and 
is not ordinarily distinguishable from that of the Veery or Wilson’s Thrush. 
It is built largely of leaves, but grasses, weed-stems, bark 
and roots are also used freely and occasionally pine needles — 
and other evergreen leaves are added. The eggs are three , “==> 
nN 
Wa 
to five, greenish-blue, unspotted, and average .88 by .66 ~ 
inches. LZ 
The food does not differ particularly from that of its near 8 
relatives, but consists very largely of insects, together with rig.152. Hermit 
some spiders and myriapods, and with a considerable amount — #htush @ ane 
of small-fruits in their season. Prof. Forbes found that 87 
percent of its food in Illinois, as ascertained by the dissection of 16 speci- 
mens taken in April and May, consisted of insects, and the only unfortunate 
feature of its food was that it included 12 percent of ground beetles 
(Carabide). 
TECHNICAL DESCRIPTION. 
Adult: Entire upper surface (except tail) uniform olive-brown; tail and upper coverts 
brighter reddish-brown (rufous), in strong contrast; sides of throat and entire breast 
spotted with brown or black, the spots smallest and sharpest on the sides of the throat, 
growing larger, rounder and paler on the lower breast; throat and middle of belly white; 
sides olive, unspotted. Sexes alike in color and size. 
Length, 6.50 to 7.50 inches; wing 3.40 to 3.90; tail 2.50 to 3. 
324, Robin. Planesticus migratorius migratorius (Linn.). (761) 
Synonyms: Common Robin, Robin Redbreast, Red-breast, Migratory Thrush, Canada 
Robin, Northern Robin, American Robin.—Turdus migratorius, Linn., 1766, and most 
American writers until about 1880.—Merula migratoria, Sw. & Rich., 1831, Ridgw., 1880, 
A. O. U. Check-list, 1886, and most subsequent authors.—Planesticus migratorius, Gund- 
lach, 1871. 
Above gray; darker, often nearly black, on the head; under parts mainly 
reddish-brown except the throat, which is white, streaked with black, 
and the belly, which is white and unspotted; outer tail-feathers white- 
tipped. 
The Robin, being our most familiar bird, should be carefully studied 
by the beginner. It serves as a convenient standard of size for com- 
parison with other species, and measures from nine to ten inches from tip 
of bill to tip of tail, being thus much larger than it looks. 
Distribution.—Eastern United States to the Rocky Mountains, in- 
cluding eastern Mexico and Alaska. Breeds from Virginia and Kansas 
northward to the Arctic coast; winters from southern Canada and the 
northern states (irregularly) southward. 
Probably our most abundant, best known and generally best loved 
native bird. It stays with us the larger part of the year, being common 
during summer throughout the entire state and some individuals commonly 
