ORIGINAL SKETCHES OF BRITISH BIRDS. 199 



to only so recently and had easily identified amidst the general 

 chorus, began at length to be replaced by those of the Ring- 

 Ousel, and, though I am doubtless laying myself open to the 

 charge of bad taste, I cannot say that I regretted the exchange. 



A shy bird I am inclined to call the Ring-Ousel, for it will fly 

 from rock to rock, generally keeping at a respectful distance ; but 

 when the vicinity of its nest is invaded, temerity becomes a very 

 strongly marked characteristic of the species. In common with the 

 Blackbird, it possesses the habit of elevating its tail on alighting, 

 but in my humble judgment its song bears a stronger resemblance 

 to that of the Mistle-Thrush than to that of the Blackbird. I 

 have been fortunate enough to hear the Ring-Ousel and Mistle- 

 Thrush sing within a short range of each other, and, though it is 

 always far from my wish to appear dogmatic, I cannot agree with 

 those writers who rather liken the former's song to that of the 

 commoner species. 



The Ring- Ousel also possesses three or four piping, plaintive 

 notes, pee-up, pee-up, pee-up, pee-up, quickly repeated ; they 

 sound inexpressibly weird and sad when heard under certain 

 conditions, and are, I believe, the call-notes of the male. While 

 uttering them the bird will not improbably be found perched low 

 down on a rock, and remaining so still that, unless the listener 

 has a first-rate eye, it will be very hard to catch a glimpse of the 

 performer. The alarm-note is a hurried tac, tac, tac. 



A nest I found on the morning to which allusion has been 

 made was placed on the ledge of a rock, and contained four eggs; 

 they were greenish blue in ground colour, richly blotched and 

 flecked with purplish brown. In fact, they were typical eggs of 

 the species. Hard by was a Common Buzzard's nest containing 

 two fresh eggs. 



I had never considered the Ring-Ousel from an epicurean 

 point of view until the autumn of 1894, when I formed one of a 

 party Grouse-driving on the Stiperstones, a well-known stretch 

 of rough and rocky moorland in Shropshire, when the bird that 

 is so easily recognized by its conspicuous gorget was daintily 

 served up as a second course one evening for my especial benefit. 

 In my opinion it beats all the other members of the family Turdince 

 in flavour, but is not comparable with either the Snipe or Land- 

 Rail. I should add, however, that the bird I sampled was in 



