102 THE OENITHOLOGIST. 



the eastward as St. John's, Newfoundland, from whence the 

 journey to Europe might possibly be accomplished in much the 

 same way, as in the case of the wandering Snow-buntings 

 (Plectrophenax nivalis), which I have known to settle upon the 

 deck of the steamer I was upon when nearly 200 miles east- 

 ward of St. John's. Were it not for these facts, I should 

 scarcely trouble to mention the occurrences of the American 

 Eobin in our islands ; for the localities mentioned so strongly 

 favour the theory that these particular examples were escaped 

 birds, that I felt justified in omitting the species from my 

 recently-published Handbook. Dr. Sharpe, however, includes 

 it in his "Handbook to the Birds of Great Britain," 1894, on 

 the ground that it is " by no means an unlikely bird to wander 

 eastward, and has occurred in Heligoland." 



The authority just cited, strangely to say, includes this 

 species in the genus Turdus, although allowing and making 

 use of Leach's sub-genus Merula (which he says is unrepresen- 

 ted in the Nearctic Eegion) for the Blackbird, and other 

 Old World forms. To nry mind, however, the American Eobin 

 is so nearly related to our Blackbird in form and plumage, 

 that I prefer to retain both in the genus Turdus, rather than to 

 separate the Blackbird by placing it in the doubtfully separable 

 sub-genus Merula, which is founded almost wholly upon the 

 more or less black plumage of the males — a poor justification in 

 the absence of other characteristics. It has always been 

 evident to me, also, that the Fieldfare (T. pilaris) is as nearly 

 allied to the Blackbird as to the type species of Turdus 

 (T. viscivorics). Again, the habits of the American Eobin 

 remind me very much of the Eedwing (T. iliacus) ; although in 

 gait when upon the ground, and also in appearance, the former 

 is very suggestive of the Blackbird ; even the ruddy tint of the 

 under parts in the " Eobin" cropping out upon the breast of an 

 old female of our Blackbird. On the whole, therefore, I prefer 

 to remain of the opinion that Merula is not separable from 

 Turdus. 



Although known throughout North America as the "Eobin," 

 this species is also frequently known as the " Migratory 

 Thrush." On this side of the Atlantic it is usually called the 

 " American Eobin," but Dr. Sharpe, with very questionable 



