There on the ground, acting like a robin, was a brown bird with a reddish tint on its head. It was a wood thrush. To us, it was a stranger as we had not spotted one in a long while. Southern Maine is the northern limit of its breeding area.

It is about the same size of a robin and builds a nest much like a robin. The nest is often built on a limb a short distance up a tree. The nest is made of very small twigs and leaves that have been woven together and plastered with mud and then lined with extra small and pliable roots. The female lays three to five eggs that have to be incubated for about two weeks.

The favorite food for a brown thrush is caterpillars when available, and I have watched one clean a parade off the trunk of a large shade tree in a very short time. The one we were watching was tossing leaves with robins to devour mosquitoes’ larva and any live insect that might be there.

The thrush family probably originated in the Old World but like many other species it was a hitchhiker on a ship a long while ago. Members of this large family of birds include robins, nightingales, and the bluebird. Two European members are the song thrush and the blackbird.

A few days ago as the snow left our groundcover, many robins arrived from their winter homes with an accompaniment of a few thrush and other birds.

Even though many birds migrate together, you will notice the area never seems to get over populated. In less than three to four days we seem to be left with just a few pairs. If nature didn’t carefully spread them out, this year’s young would stay and next year’s, and the population would grow to the extent that the area couldn’t support them. I believe the pair that was here last year is given priority.

We have a family of phoebes who nest under our back deck and they have been the same for a few years.

As age and sickness have curtailed my outdoor labors, I’m spending much more time watching the birds and other activities going on around me. It sure helps me from getting bored.

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