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of Turdus pilaris in its native home. "This was the largest colony of the birds I have ever met 
with, and on the fjelds five or six pairs nesting in close proximity are as much as I have ever noticed, 
while isolated nests are not uncommon. Some of these are placed in absurdly open positions. I 
have seen one nest close to a house in a small birch, and another on the top of a fence close to a 
path, in direct view of everyone leaving the house, both being built so low down that anyone could 
look into the nests. They must inevitably have been discovered by us, even if the clamour of the 
parent birds had not at once revealed their position. Another nest was placed on the open 
window-sill of an unoccupied saeter in full view of anyone approaching the house, but was left 
unmolested when the latter became inhabited for the summer, and the young birds were duly 
reared. On another occasion I found a nest in a small birch-tree standing by itself on the side 
of the road, and the mother bird, drenched to the skin, as we were ourselves, was squatting on the 
nest and protecting her young from the rain, her wings being outstretched over each side of the nest. 
When the young are hatched, the birds are quieter and less demonstrative, as if afraid of drawing 
attention to their progeny, and the parents may then be seen searching for food by the side 
of the water and flying off with it to the nest in the quietest and most unobtrusive manner. 
The following account is taken from Seebohm's ‘History of British Birds ':—* The Fieldfare's 
haunts in Britain are varied ones. А thorough wanderer, it is seen almost everywhere; either 
passing over on its journeyings from place to place, or stationary as long as its food is 
to be obtained. It prefers the isolated woods and pastures to shrubberies, although in severe 
weather it is often seen amongst evergreens, in company with the Redwing. "Гһеве birds also 
frequent the well-cultivated districts, seeking their food on the tall hedges; and occasionally a few 
stragglers come quite close to the houses to feed on the hawthorns in the gardens. As long as the 
weather keeps open, the Fieldfares seem to shun man's presence almost entirely ; but the first severe 
fall of snow, the first sharp frost, brings them “іп” in great numbers. 
“ The first visit to the breeding-place of the Fieldfare is an event in the life of an ornithologist 
never to be forgotten. As you drive along the excellent Norwegian roads in the carioles or light 
gigs of the country, through the pine-forests or by the side of the cultivated land near the villages, 
there is little in the bird-life to remind you that you are not in one of the mountainous districts of 
England. As you approach the Dovrefjeld, however, the ground rises, the pines become smaller, 
and the hill-sides are sprinkled over with birch trees. Now is the time to look out for the Fieldfare. 
Presently the long watched-for tsak, tsak is heard. You tie your horse to the nearest tree, climb the 
hill-side whence the sound came, and presently find yourself in a colony of Fieldfares. The birds 
make a great uproar as you invade their domain, but soon escape beyond gunshot, and their distant 
tsak, tsak is the only sound you can hear. Your natural impulse is to ascend the first tree where 
you can see a nest, which is almost sure to be placed in the fork of a birch against the trunk and the 
first large branch. Close by are sure to be many more nests, some built on the flat horizontal branch 
of a pine; and outlying nests belonging to the colony will be found for some distance all round. 
“ The Fieldfare arrives on our shore a little later than the Redwing—in the last week of October, 
or, perhaps more frequently, in the beginning of November. It is, however, a difficult thing to give 
the exact date of this bird's appearance; for its wandering mode of life in this country baffles precise 
observation, and renders a record of the exact date of its arrival almost an impossibility. Like the 
other members of this group of birds, the Fieldfare migrates for the most part at night, and usually 
at a considerable height. 
“ When the first heavy fall of snow is lying on the ground, a walk abroad will probably cause 
you to make the acquaintance of the Fieldfare. There is something about the first heavy fall of snow 
peculiarly attractive and interesting to the naturalist—in fact to all who take a delight in rural scenes. 
The whole landscape then bears a strange novel look; it is something fresh ; and, what is more, bird- 
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