ORNITHOLOGIST 



OOLOGIST. 



f 1.00 per Joseph M. Wade, Editor and Publisher. Single Copy 



Annum. Established, March, 1875. 1" Ce"t8. 



VOL. VII. BOSTON, DECEMBER 15, 1882. No. 24. 



The Wood-thrushes {IFylodchla) of 

 New Brunswick. 



ThiB Province can lay claim to but three 

 members of this 6ub-genus of the Ttirdl- 

 dm, the Tawny, also called "Wilson's 

 Thrush," and " Veery," the Olive-backed 

 and the Hermit, for the Wood Thrush does 

 not come so far north on the Atlantic sea- 

 board, rarely occurring beyond Massachu- 

 setts and never reaching the northern limit 

 of the Alleghanian faunal area, while its 

 gray-cheeked congener, thoiigh probably 

 passing through the country en-route to 

 its breeding ground in the far North, has 

 not as yet been taken within our bounda- 

 ries. The Hermit and the Olive-backed 

 are abundant throughout the Province and 

 the Tawny is much too common to be called 

 rare. They usually reach \h6 vicinity of 

 St. John d^xring the first half of May, the 

 Hermit arriving first, followed within a few 

 days by the Tawny and in some two weeks 

 by the Olive-backed. They leave here 

 about the middle of September. These 

 species have a general appearance when in 

 the field so similar that none but experts 

 can distinguish them, though, upon a close 

 examination, the characteristics of each are 

 found to be marked with sufficient dis- 

 tinctness to leave no doubt of their iden- 

 tification. In the field all three have the 

 same outline from beak to tail, the same 

 russet coloring above the same dull white 

 breasts, more or less spotted ; but lay ex- 

 amples of each side by side and it will 

 prove that the Tawny was correctly named, 

 for his russet plumes have a reddish tint in 

 marked contrast with the greenish shade 



of the Olive-backed, while the Hermit is 

 distinguished by his tawny tail which 

 changes to olive above the rump. But the 

 actions of these birds are more nearly iden- 

 tical than either form or color, for whether 

 seen hopping along the ground or perched 

 upon a tree, feeding or flj-ing, it is impos- 

 sible to detect any difference in them. 



Much has been written about these same 

 manners that is not warranted by what is 

 observed of them during their visit to this 

 coimtry. While here they appear neither 

 timid nor shy, and I doubt if they ever 

 yield to such plebian weaknesses. These 

 birds are patricians, the premier genus of 

 the arian aristocracy on Mr. Eidgway's 

 roll, and true to the instincts and tradi- 

 tions of " the first families" are modest and 

 retiring, and prefer the calm repose of the 

 forest to the glare and bustle of the field 

 and roadside. They are courageous and 

 composed under excitement, but never 

 quarrelsome, and are happy without being 

 noisy. In short, they display the good 

 breeding and i-efined manners of the thor- 

 oughbreds that they are. They cannot be 

 called gregarious but they are not solitary 

 — Hermit Thrush is a positive misnomer. 

 They do not commingle as socially as do 

 the species of some other families ; indeed, 

 they never appear as companions, yet it is 

 not unusual to find a number of the same 

 species frequenting one grove. I have 

 seen as many as thirty Hermits within an 

 area of a hundred yards square. In nidifi- 

 cation our three species exhibit a marked 

 difference ; the nests are differently con- 

 structed and placed in different situations. 

 Their eggs also differ in shape, size and 



