Тhе Ring Ouzel is a bird of the Thrushes family. Inhabits in Bulgaria, where is a permanent species, mostly in the higher mountains. The most common is in the Rila and Pirin and less in the Western Rhodopes, Vitosha, Osogovo, Central and Western Stara Planina Mountains. According to my observations is rare in Stara Planina if any is found there. Despite dozen tracks I made across Stara Planina, I never have met Ring Ouzel, unlike Pirin Mountain where in two walks, both times I had a meeting with this bird. Ring Ouzel (Turdus torquatus) prefers coniferous forests.
Unlike other Thrushes birds, Ring Ouzel is not particularly cowardly and allows people to the very close distance. As you will see from the pictures especially with female Ring Ouzel who approached at distance of 4-5 meters, although we were a group of 10 people. The male also allowed close distance with me in our two meetings in Pirin, although clearly saw me.
Ring Ouzel has a body length of 24 - 27cm and a weight of 85-120 g.
Ring Ouzel has a sexual dimorphism. The male is colored dark brown and black with a broad white stripe crescent-shaped chest, which is the characteristic of the species and hence the species name. In the lower part of the body observed bright white stripes and belly feathers have pale edges. Each feather is bordered by a thin white stripe. It has brown legs, yellow beaks with varying degrees of brown on top and upper jaw and dark brown eyes. Beak winter becomes gray-black. The female is dark brown and the necklace is narrower, with whitish or light brown tint. Juveniles are brown with vague, almost missing necklace and transverse dark spots on the underside of the body.
It moves slightly as walking and jumping on the ground. During spring and summer feed on insects, worms, larvae and snails that collects on the ground and among the grasses. Checks for them under the leaves as deftly flips them with his beak. In other seasons consumed berries - blueberries, rosehips, strawberries, raspberries, as well as seeds of grasses and shrubs.
The breeding period begins in April. Spends a lot of time on the ground where looking for food, and in this regard makes its nest near meadows, clearings and clearings. Usually, the pairs nests away from each other, but sometimes there is settling in small colonies. Ring Ouzel makes its nest close to the ground on trees and shrubs, or directly on the soil, concealed under dense vegetation. The two birds build it together, carefully hidden in the thick branches, bushes and leaves. Sometimes put him at the top of a tall tree. It was great, made of twigs, grass and moss glued with mud. Stand with grass, roots and leaves.
The female lays 4-5 blue-green eggs with rust spots that both birds incubate in shifts for two weeks. The young leave the nest 15-16 days after hatching. Parents feed them mostly with earthworms and beetles. Most couples have one brood per season and only some of the birds, especially in the southern areas of the range, grown offspring twice a year.