they are engaged in rearing their young alone, would entitle them to protection, were the parents
themselves to feed exclusively upon garden fruits for the whole period. But at this time the diet
of the old birds is very largely of an animal nature; nor is this the only season during which the
destruction of insects goes on. Upon the first arrival of the main body of the birds early in the
spring, long before any fruits are ripe, they throw. themselves into newly-ploughed fields, and scatter
over meadows, lawns, and parks, in eager search for the worms and grubs that, later in the season,
would prove invincible to the agriculturist, were not their ravages thus stayed in advance by the
friendly army of Robins.
“ ‘ The bird is now very generally protected by legislative enactments, during a portion of the
year at least; it is to be hoped that the laws may be made still more stringent, and the ‘.close’
time become co-extensive with the year itself. As an object of ‘ sport ’ the Robin can possess no
attractions save to idle children of larger or smaller growth; while its commercial value, as an
article of food, is wholly inconsiderable. There are, therefore, weighty and cogent reasons why the
Robin should be protected by law at all seasons; for there would rarely, if ever, be difficulty in
gaining permission, upon proper representation, to destroy the very few that might be required for
scientific purposes.’
“ Among wild fruits the Robin is particularly fond of elder- and poke-berries. In winter these
birds are unusually common in the beautiful hummock-woods of Florida, where the mealy
sparkle-berry and the holly with its shining vermilion berries grow in abundance.—The plumage
of the bird’s breast is often stained with the violet juice of the poke-berry.
“ From early in the morning to late in the afternoon these birds are busy almost without
interruption. It is only during the hot part of the day that they are somewhat less active. Their
flight is smooth, rapid, and skilful, and does not lack grace and beauty. To one who has seen
during migration flocks of several hundred individuals rapidly flying over the forest trees, it seems
easy to understand how they can traverse such an immense expanse of country in so short a time.
They move about nimbly among the boughs and are perfectly at home on the ground. They run
about quickly, frequently stand still, raise the tail with a jerk and simultaneously lower the .wings,
turn the head to one side to listen, and then hop along again. This jerking of the ..tail and wings
while running about on the ground is a common trait of all the true Thrushes.
“ Towards autumn the Robins unite in larger or smaller flocks and travel south. They now
prefer the woods along the banks of rivers flowing southward. Especially the Mississippi, Wabash,
and others, are such highways during migration. In their winder quarters they are very shy; rarely
will they approach a human dwelling, preferring to stay in the depths of great forests, where they
look for food among the dead leaves which cover the ground.
“ Like all of our smaller birds the Robin has many enemies. In gardens the cats catch many
young and even old birds, in the woods Squirrels, Raccoons, Opossums, and many birds of prey kill
them. Their greatest enemy, however, is man. In the South almost incalculable numbers are
killed by white and black pot-hunters, and in many localities of the North many hundreds of almost
fully-fledged young are taken from their nests and meet their doom in the kitchen. Such unreasonable
slaughter should be stopped everywhere by the rigorous execution of the law for the protection
of birds.”
From the observations of American naturalists it is evident that the Robin combines many
characteristic habits of the European Blackbird 1Merula merulo) and the Fieldfare (Turdus pilaris),
but this latter is never seen in such wonderful numbers on migration as T. migratorius. I quote the
following notes from Dr. W. W. Cooke’s 1 Report on Bird Migration in the Mississippi Valley,’ as being
one of the most interesting records of the migration of a bird ever published:—“ The Robin is a
common summer resident in Manitoba and throughout the Mississippi Valley, except in the extreme
southern portion. In winter it is abundant in Louisiana and in eastern and southern Texas, it also
winters irregularly over most of its United States range. It seems to be the best known bird in the
Mississippi Valley, and many more notes were contributed on it than on any other species. It
should be possible, therefore, to determine its movements with considerable accuracy. All through
December, 1883, it was found in abundance throughout southern Illinois, Missouri, and Kansas, but
the extreme cold of the first week in January, 1884, drove it farther south into its real winter home.
During the larger part of this month the bulk of the Robins (probably even 90 per cent, of them)
were south of the parallel of 37°. This is south of the usual winter limit of the species, the northern
boundary for ordinary winters being about latitude 39°. It must not be supposed, however, that
Robins never spend the winter farther north. The fact has been repeatedly demonstrated that
nature has bestowed on them strong constitutions, so that if food is plenty they can withstand
severe cold. Every year some of the northern observers report Robins wintering about their stations,
and the winter of 1883-84 was no exception. One was seen, January 1, in north-western Indiana,
another, January 11, at Vermillion, Dak. ; and finally, at Hastings, Minn., 500 miles from his
brethren, one was seen December 28, 1883, with a flock of Fine Grosbeaks {Pinícola enucleator),
apparently at home and determined to spend the winter. It was seen repeatedly, and actually
remained till spring with the same flock of Grosbeaks.
“ The distribution of the Robin in its winter home depends entirely on the food-supply ;
where food is plenty, there the Robin remains, though observers a few miles away may not see one
all the winter. At Manhattan, Kans., berries are abundant, and during the winter of 1883-84,
as in previous years, flocks of five hundred or more individuals were constantly seen, while observers
at stations but a short distance away reported no Robins from December until February.
Manhattan, Kans., is the most northern station at which flocks of Robins remained during the
winter. So far as can be learned, but few wintered in Indian Territory, nor did northern Texas
fare much better ; but they were reported as wintering in immense numbers along 300 miles of the
cañón of the Nueces River in south-western Texas. In Concho and Tom Green Counties, Mr. Lloyd
states that they are tolerably common in spring and fall, and that a iew winter in the river bottoms.
They were reported from all the Southern States, at some points as abundant, at others as rare.
“ In the early spring of 1884, as if disliking winter quarters, the Robins pushed north at the
first breath o f warm weather. Regardless of the certainty of being overtaken by cold, they hurried
on, and from January 21 to February 3 occupied all the country from which they had been driven
by the low temperature of the first of the year. This movement was confined to comparatively
few individuals, and while the scouts had advanced to latitude 39 , or even a little farther north -
single birds having been seen at Burlington, Iowa (lat. 40° 50'), and at Lake Mills, Wis. (lat. 43 06)
the main body still remained in camp three or four hiindred miles to the south. Then followed a
whole month of waiting, during which time adventurous birds pressed northward, only to be
driven back by snow and ice; nor was the real advance commenced until March 9. From that date
until they had passed our northern boundary their advance was constant and more or less uniform.
The regular advance of the van appears to have been as follows :—From March 9 to 15 they spread
over Illinois and eastern Nebraska to latitude 41° 51’; March 16 there was a slight advance in Iowa ;
March 17 and 18, no record ; March 19 and 20, an advance to latitude 43° in Iowa, Illinois, and
Wisconsin, but not in Nebraska ; March 21, a sudden spreading over Wisconsin to latitude 45 .
“ By March 24 the rest of the stations in Wisconsin had reported, and an equal advance had
taken place in Minnesota, so that by this date the van was at latitude 45 along the whole line. North
of this all the stations are in the valley of the Red River of the North. In this valley the first
arrivals reached latitude 47° April 3, and just one week later appeared at Oak Point, Manitoba
(lat. 50° 30'). The fact that the spring migration on the Western plains in 1884 was several days
2 q 2