9G 
BLACKBIRD. 
last. His song is full and deep, but lias a greater 
monotony of tone, and wants the clear and varied 
notes of the Song Thrush, and we do not think 
that it is either so frequently sung or so long 
continued at a time. It is, nevertheless, a better 
cage bird than the other, is more sprightly in its 
manners, is easily tamed, and learns to whistle 
parts of tunes, and even to imitate the sound of 
one or two words ; but though we have often 
heard the Blackbird whistle correctly the first 
part of a tune, we never knew perseverance able 
to teach the commencement of the second part. 
The Blackbird is a more skulking and shy bird 
than the Thrush ; it delights more in shrubbery 
and low bushes, and except when singing to his 
mate, we seldom see him perched aloft. When 
disturbed or alarmed, he escapes by running or 
a low flight, sounding his alarm scream as he 
flies, and when alighting raises and expands his 
tail. The food is nearly similar to that of the 
last, but is sought in gardens, hedges, under the 
shade and edges of copse or brushwood, and sel- 
dom in exposed meadows or pastures ; and it 
pursues the same method of obtaining the snail 
of the helix nemoralis , which we have already 
mentioned as observed by Mr Selby. The nest 
is built in low bushes, evergreens being preferred, 
and last year we discovered one placed upon the 
ground, in a plantation, at the root of a young 
Scotch fir tree. The nest is rather loosely built, 
with a considerable quantity of mud in the struc- 
ture of the sides, but lined internally with fine 
