BIRDS 89 



BLACKBIRD. 



Turdus merula, L. 



The Blackbird is mentioned in the Naworth Accounts as 

 worth one penny, a comparatively high price for the times : 

 1 4 black birds, iiij d.' Nowadays the species is ubiquitous, or 

 nearly so, in Lakeland, having regard of course to suitable cover. 

 It varies less in its choice of nesting sites than most birds; 

 hence one might have supposed that the eccentric conduct of 

 the female Blackbird which, in the year 1883, built her nest 

 and laid in a waterspout above the porch of a private house, 

 would have remained unique. 1 But history repeats itself even 

 in the domestic economy of the Blackbird. My friend Mr. J. C. 

 Dove, a few years later, observed an exact repetition of the per- 

 formance on the part of another hen Blackbird. This bird built 

 in a spout under the roof of a house at Stanwix. 2 



RING OUZEL. 



Turdus torquatus, L. 



A few Ring Ouzels enliven many of our fell lands with their 

 cheery presence during the summer months, frequenting rough 

 ground varied with rocks and heather, by preference. At the 

 same time they may often be seen flitting about the stone walls 

 of the Pennine range. Their gestures when disturbed are full of 

 vigour and animation. Their wild rich song is well calculated 

 to harmonise with the lonely regions which they share with the 

 Raven and Red Grouse. The last days of March witness the 

 return of the Ring Ouzels to their upland home. They nest in 

 April and May, generally beside one or other of the numerous 

 becks that have scored such long, deep furrows on the hillsides, 

 by reason of the rain and snow which descend in winter-time. 

 I have known the young of the Ring Ouzel to leave their nest 

 as early as the 26th of May, but most of the first broods fly 

 during the second week of June, at least in the majority of 

 seasons. They begin to gather into small flocks about the end 

 of July, and for the remainder of their stay they rove about in 

 1 Birds of Cumberland, p. 3. 2 Field, May 14, 1887. 



