39.} 'l‘llltL'Slll'IS, BLUEBIRDS, ETC. "

hear it now without feeling an impulse to applaud. The bird is so small, the song so rich and full. that one is re111inded of a chorister with the voiee of an adult soprano. To extend the comparison, one watches this gifted but unconscious musician flitting about the trees with s0111ewhat the feeling that one observes the choir—boy dofling his surplice and joining his comrades for a game of tag.

751. Polioptilacwruleawiunu) BLt‘i-I- on. 11' GN vrc -.\TCHER (See Fig. 1'18, 1;.) 1111.5 71 pper parts bluish g1 a\'t'orehe.1d and tront of the head

narrowly bordered by black , wings edged with grayish, the secondaries bor- dered with whitish; outer tail-tbathers white, changing gradually until the middle ones are black; under parts dull grayish white. Ad. 9.-—-Similar, but without the blaek on the head. 11.,4'50; \\'., 2 Ta 2'00; 13.. ‘40.

[1’11I;{/1>.—l‘l:1ste1‘11 United States: breeds from the Gulf States to northern Illinois. southern (.lntario, and New Je v, and wanders rarely to Minnesota and \Iaine; winters from Florida southward.

\\ ashington. r‘athei e,on1nion S. R. ., .\pl. 5 to Sept.

A1325 ot tendiils, line strips ot ba1k, and fine masses firmly interwoven and e0\e1ed txte1nally with lichens, on a horizontal bianeh 01 in a crotch, ten to sixty, usually thirty feet up. [ff/{AZ tour to five, bluish white, thickly spotted and speckled with einnamon—7 rutbus~brown, or umber, '56 x '46.

The Blue-gray Gnatcateher frequents rather densely foliaged trees, generally in the woods. showing :1 preference for the upper branches. He is a bird of strong character. and always seems to me like a minia- ture Mockingbird with some of the habits of Kinglets.

Ilis exquisitely finished song is quite as re111a1'kable as the ordinary performance of his large prototype. but is possessed of so little volume as to be inaudible unless one is quite near the singer. Ilis character- istic call-notc—a rather sudden fl'ng. like the twang of a banjo string —ea11 be heard at a greater distance.

FAMILY TURDIDAE. THRI’SHES, BLUEBIRDS, ETC.

The three hundred species included in this large family are placed by systematists in several subfamilies. About one hundred and fifty are true Thrushes belonging in the subfamily Turd'ime. These are distributed throughout the world. some twelve species inhabiting the United States. As a rule, they inhabit wooded regions, are migratory, and gregarious or sociable to a greater or less extent during their 111i- grations and in winter.

As songsters the" are inferior to some of our birds in power of execution. but their voices are. possessed of greater SWeetness and expression. and they are conceded first rank among song—birds by all true lovers of bird music.