Home › Volumes › Bird Homes › Open Nests in Trees, Bushes, and Vines
Olive-backed or Swainson's Thrush
Adult--Upper parts dusky olive; under parts, breast, and throat buff; belly white; sides gray with blackish spots except on the belly; eye ring and lores buff. Length--7.17.
Breeding Range--In the higher mountains of Pennsylvania, and from northern New England northward. Mr. Brewster speaks of it breeding commonly on Mount Graylock in western Massachusetts.
The nest is placed in a bush or tree within ten feet of the ground. It is made of leaves, grass, twigs, moss, and fine roots, and is rather bulky. The eggs, 3 to 4 in number, are pale bluish green with specks or spots of light reddish brown and dull lilac. Size--.93 x .68.
The Olive-backed Thrush is an inhabitant of the secluded woods, and during the breeding season, which commences about the middle of June, they live almost exclusively in the regions where coniferous trees abound.