A YEAR WITH THE BIRDS 
593 
THE CATBIRD 
He sits on a branch of yon blossoming bush, 
This madcap cousin of Robin and Thrush, 
And sings without ceasing the whole morning long ! 
Now wild, now tender, the wayward song 
That flows from his soft, gray, fluttering throat. 
But often he stops in his sweetest note, 
And, shaking a flower from the blossoming bough, 
Drawls out, “ Mi-ew, mi-ou ! ” 
— Edith Thomas 
Brown Thrasher: Harporhynchus rufus. S. R. 
Length: n inches. 
Male and Female: Above reddish brown, darker on wings. Beneath 
yellowish white, with brown, arrow-shaped spots on breast and 
sides. Wings with two whitish bands. Tail very long. Female 
paler. Bill black, lower mandible yellow at base; feet light. 
Song: Bravura style, with frequent colloquial strains. 
Season: Last week in April to early in October. 
Nest: In low shrubbery or thickly-leaved tree, a boldly-made structure 
of grape-vine, bark, grasses, twigs, and rootlets. In sandy locali- 
ties, generally on the ground. 
Eggs: 4, green, sometimes paling to white, thickly speckled with 
brown. 
Song Thrush, Red Thrush, Brown Mocking-bird, Mavis, 
are four of the local names for this most exultant and (quan- 
tity and quality considered) dashing of our song-birds. He 
arrives from late April to early May, and, after a week or 
so of almost uninterrupted music, settles down and prepares 
his nest. 
The Brown Thrasher breeds throughout the United States 
east of the Great Plains, and winters in the south Atlantic and 
Gulf States. It occasionally visits the garden or orchard, but 
nests in swamps or in groves standing upon low ground. 
While it generally prefers a thickly-grown retreat, it some- 
times builds in a pile of brush at a distance from trees. On 
account of its more retiring habits it is not so conspicuous as 
the robin, although it may be equally abundant. Few birds 
can excel the Thrasher in sweetness of song, but it is so shy that 
its notes are not heard often enough to be appreciated. Its 
favorite time for singing is the early morning, when, perched 
on the top of some tall bush or low tree, it gives an exhibition 
of vocal powers which would do credit to a Mocking-bird. 
