28 
MERULIDE. 
speckled over witli oclirc-ycllow ; the beak and feet are red- 
disli-grey, the corners of the mouth and eyelids dirty orange; 
the young males may be distinguished by their darker plu¬ 
mage. After the first autumnal moult the young male birds 
nearly resemble the adult, except in the under parts of the 
body, Avhere the black feathers are broadly bordered with ash- 
grey, and the adult plumage is not entirely perfected until 
after the second autumnal change. A beautiful specimen of 
the white variety of the Blackbird has for some time been an 
inhabitant of the Zoological Gardens in the Regent’s Park. 
This beautiful little bird appears perfectly inoffensive and 
gentle ; in colour it is of a lovely cream or ivory-white, with 
reddish beak and orbits. 
The egg No. 51 is that of the Blackbird. 
