184 NORTHERN ZOOLOGY. 



Inches. 

 Length from the tip of the bill to the end of 



the tail 7 



,, of the tail . . .2 



,, of the folded wing . . .3 



,, of the bill from the angle of the 

 mouth ..... 



Dimensions. 







Lines. 



Length 



of the bill on its r 



dge 



6 



99 



of the tarsus 





9 



?? 



of the middle toe 





10J 



99 



of the middle nail 

 of the hind toe 





8.1 



„ 



of the hind nail . 





Inches. 



Lines 



. 



7 



1 



1 







n 







n 







4* 







3 



[40.] 4. Merula solitaria. (Swainson.) Hermit Thrush. 



Genus, Merula. Ray. (Turdus. Linn.) 



Hermit Thrush. {Turdus solitarius*) Wilson, v., p. 95, pi. 43, f. ii. 



Turdus minor. Bonap. Syn., p. 75, No. 100. Observ., p. 40, No. 72. 



Ch. Sp. Merula solitahia, fuscescenti-ferruginea sultus albescens, gutture pectoreque maculis nigris notalis, 



remigum marginibus et cauda cum tectricibus ejus superioribus rufescentibus, remigibus 3 — 4 — 5 longissimis ; 



remige secunda se.rtaque (squalibus, unguibus parum curvatis. 

 Sp. Ch. Hermit Thrush, dark ferruginous-brown, beneath whitish ; throat and breast marked with black spots ; 



margins of the quills, the tail, and its upper coverts, tinged with rufous ; the third, fourth, and fifth quills 



the longest, the second and sixth nearly equal ; claws slightly curved. 



According to Wilson, this bird inhabits the southern parts of the United States 

 the whole year, frequenting- the deepest and gloomiest recesses of the cane and 

 myrtle swamps. It is rarely seen in Pennsylvania, unless for a few weeks in the 

 spring and late in the fall, and in both seasons it is mute, having only, in the 

 spring, an occasional squeak, like that of a young stray chicken. One specimen 



* Having stated the reasons which induce us to consider the Turdus solitarius of Wilson as a distinct species from 

 the Turdus minor of Gmelin, it remains to be considered whether the original name, imposed on the former by its 

 first describer, can be retained with propriety. Nomenclators have applied this specific appellation to three different 

 birds. 1. The Turdus solitarius of Latham is stated by M. Temminck to be the young of the European cyanus; an 

 opinion confirmed by our own observations, noted more than twenty years ago, during a residence in Sicily, where 

 these birds, from the mountainous nature of the island, are particularly common. This name, therefore, sinks into a 

 synonyme. 2. The Turdus solitarius of Montagu (Supp. Orn. Diet.) is now well known to be the young of the 

 common Starling in its first year's plumage, and consequently has been expunged from our systems. 3. The Turdus 

 solitarius of Mr. Stevens. This is first stated {Gen. Zool., x., p. 303) to be the same as the T. solitarius of Dr. Latham, 

 — a nominal species, already disposed of ; but in a subsequent volume, printed in 1 827, this name seems transferred 

 to the cyanus of M. Temminck. Wilson wrote in 1812. Amidst this confusion, one point, however, is clearly 

 established ; and it is this, that if the name of solitarius is to be retained in our systems to any species of Thrush, it 

 can only be given, with strict propriety, to the bird so designated by Wilson. It is upon these grounds that we have 

 thought it right to preserve the original name. — Sw. 



