the winter, and come farther south and Mr. Selby remarks,
that, “ like many of our autumnal visitants, they arrive with
a north or north-east wind, plainly indicating the countries
from which they hold their progress. After recruiting their
strength for a few days, they move onward in a southerly
direction.”
The Thrush is universally spread over England, Wales,
Ireland, Scotland, and its islands: it is also common during
summer in Denmark, Sweden, Norway, and Russia. From
thence southwards it extends over Germany, France, Italy
and the Morea, and has been seen in winter as far as Smyrna
and Trebizond.
The beak is umber brown, except the base of the under
mandible, which is a paler yellow brown; the irides hazel
brown; the upper part of the head, neck, the back, wings,
rump, and upper surface of the tail-feathers, dark hair-brown;
the external edges of the primaries and wing-coverts wood-
brown ; from the beak to the eye a dark brown streak, with
a lighter brown streak over i t ; the eyelids light brown ; the
feathers forming the ear-coverts mottled with two shades of
brown, with darker coloured tips forming part of a circle;
the chin white ; the throat, sides of the neck, breast, and
flanks, ochraceous yellow, spotted with dark brown ; belly,
vent, and tail-coverts, nearly white, the former with a few
well-defined spots of dark brown ; under surface of tail-
feathers reddish brown; legs and toes pale brown, claws
darker brown.
The whole length rather less than nine inches. The wings
from the carpal joint to the end of the longest primary, four
inches and five-eighths : the first feather very short; the
second rather longer than the fifth ; the third and fourth
nearly equal in length, longer than the second; the third the
longest in the wing.
The female is smaller than the male ; the head and upper
part of the neck are lighter ; the white of the breast not so
pure, with less of the yellow colour ; the breast spots larger,
and not so well defined.
The back and scapulary feathers in young birds have each
a pale yellowish spot in the centre, and the smaller wing-
coverts streaked with pale brown.
Varieties in colour among Thrushes are not uncommon.
The sternum, or breastbone, in Birds may be considered
the most characteristic, as it is also one of the most important,
of the bones in their skeleton. It has already been observed,
page 105, that the extent of surface furnished by the sides
and keel of this bone indicate the size and strength of the
muscles which move the wings, and therefore afford a criterion
by which to judge of the comparative power of flight
possessed by the species. The breastbone also supports and
protects all the most important soft parts of the body. A figure
of the sternum of one species in each genus, as far as practicable,
will therefore be introduced among the vignettes, for the
purpose of illustrating generic form in bone, and the general
accordance in figure, in conjunction with external characters and
habits, may be accepted in proof of systematic arrangement.
The outlines below represent the forms of the sterna in
the genera Lanius and Muscicapa, or the Shrikes and the
Flycatchers. The figure on the left hand is from the Great
Grey Shrike : the other is from the Spotted Flycatcher.