. . s,hchens, feathers, hair, and other soft materials is usuallyplaced in a hole of some tree or stump. Not infrequently,however, the deserted holes of squirrels or the old nests ofcrows and magpies are selected. The European crested titmouse would be a popularbird and much better known were it not for the difficulty ofstudying the habits of so small an object in the dense andextensive forests which it frequents. Its characteristics canonly be satisfactorily observed when it is compelled to seekits food in more open places. THE EURO
. . s,hchens, feathers, hair, and other soft materials is usuallyplaced in a hole of some tree or stump. Not infrequently,however, the deserted holes of squirrels or the old nests ofcrows and magpies are selected. The European crested titmouse would be a popularbird and much better known were it not for the difficulty ofstudying the habits of so small an object in the dense andextensive forests which it frequents. Its characteristics canonly be satisfactorily observed when it is compelled to seekits food in more open places. THE EUROPEAN SONG THRUSH* The Song Thrush of Europe is a beautiful and familiarbird of sprightly habits and wonderful power of song. Singit must, for it possesses a happy nature. In England andScotland the thrushes sing from the month of January tothat of October. Its blithe song indicates a contentednature and that its larder is full to overflowing. Its voiceis never heard amid desolation. Its home is not in themarshes nor in regions that are without trees or EUROPEAN SONG THRUSH. (Turdus mwsicus). * o Life-size. UHFOND, CMICAbO FAMOUS FOREIGN BIRDS 509 The song thrush loves trees; the woods and hedges arounflplantations, even the bushes of gardens and the orchards,are to its liking, and there it is found. It prefers animalfood and thus destroys vast numbers of snails, slugs, earth-worms, larva?, beetles, and other insects. When it cannotobtain animal food, it eats berries and seeds, and frequentlycommits great devastations among cultivated fruits. How-ever, much of its food consists of animal forms that arehighly detrimental to the growth of cultivated plants. Iteats large numbers of snails which feed upon the earlyvegetables and upon the smaller fruits. Even before thesnails have awakened from their winters sleep the songthrush finds them in their cozy hiding places beneath hedgesand under a covering of leaves, where they have been pro-tected from the storms and the cold. S
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