THRUSHES, BLUEBIRDS, ETC. 399 



ceous-buff ; the feathers of ihe sides of the throat with wedge-shaped black 

 spots at their tips, those of the breast with rounded black spots at their tips ; 

 middle of the belly white; sides brownish gray or brownish ashy. L., 717; 

 W., 3-93; T., 2-76; B., -50. 



Semarhs. — This bird will be confused only with the Gray-cheeked and 

 Bicknell's Thrushes, from which it differs in the much stronger suffusion of 

 buff on the throat and breast, its buff eye-ring and lores. 



Range. — ^Breeds from Manitoba, northern New England, and New Bruns- 

 wick to Alaska and Labrador, and southward in the Eocky Mountains, and 

 along the Alleghanies to Pennsylvania ; winters in the tropics. 



Washington, common T. V., May 4 to 28 ; Sept. 22 to Oct. 25. Sing Sing, 

 tolerably common T. V., May 2 to 30; Sept. 19 to Oct. 22. Cambridge, com- 

 mon T. v.. May 12 to June 3 ; Sept. 10 to Oct. 5. 



Nest, of coarse grasses, moss, rootlets, leaves, and bark, lined with rootlets 

 and grasses, in bushes or small trees, about four feet up. Eggs, three to four, 

 greenish blue, more or less spotted and speckled with cinnamon-brown or 

 rufous, '90 X -di. 



Passing northward in the spring, in small, silent bands, scattered 

 through the woodland undergrowth, whence they quietly slip away, if 

 disturbed, often to the higher branches of the trees, these birds easily 

 escape observation. In late September or early October their loud, 

 metallic oall-notes may be recognized overhead at night, and during 

 the day the birds themselves may be found on the edges of the woods 

 or along tangled hedgerows, associated with Sparrows and other mi- 

 grants. Their summer home is in the coniferous forest of the north, 

 although they do not confine themselves strictly to the evergreen 

 woods, and, avoiding its depths, seek rather the vicinity of clearings 

 well grown up with firs and spruces. Here, day after day, the same 

 musician may be seen pouring forth his ringing song from some com- 

 manding elevation— preferably a dead tree top. If approached, he 

 promptly dives down into the underbrush, where he is very likely 

 joined by his mate, and both proceed to scold, in a mild way, the 

 chance intruder. Little is ever seen of these shy birds, but fortunately 

 their notes are quite characteristic, and the sole obstacle in distinguish- 

 ing them from those of the Hermit Thrush, a bird frequenting the 

 same localities, lies in the difficulty of tracing them to their source. 



The effect of its loud and beautiful song is much enhanced by the 

 evening hush in which it is most often heard. It lacks the leisurely 

 sweetness of the Hermit Thrush's outpourings, nor is there pause, but 

 in lower key and with greater energy it bubbles on rapidly to a close 

 rather than fading out with the soft melody of its renowned rival. 

 There are also a variety of other notes, the most frequent being a 

 puh of alarm, pitched higher than a corresponding cluch of the Hermit 

 Thrush. J- I>^i»=T' J«- 



