PART THREE
EARLY SPRING BIRDS
On a mild day late in February or early in March, before winter is really over and snow has entirely disappeared, one may hear the cheerful voice of the song sparrow, the welcome chirp of the robin, or the sweet note of the bluebird. Even though ice and snow return, courage is renewed with the advent of winged messengers who presage the ever fresh miracle of spring, and who hold home-love in their hearts so strong that they brave cold and distance to return to the "Land of Their Hearts' Desire."
As the season advances, other birds arrive. A "dusky line" of wild geese "honk" noisily; flocks of grackles "creak" from the pines; red-winged blackbirds join the hylas in awakening the marshes; phoebes call disconsolately for their mates; fox sparrows, chewinks, and white-throats sing melodiously from thickets; cowbirds appear in fields, which ring with the clear songs of meadowlarks and the tender notes of field and vesper sparrows. Mourning doves coo gently to each other; chipping sparrows make their homes in our gardens; kingfishers sound their rattles; flickers and red-headed woodpeckers raise their loud voices. The hills "clap their hands with joy"; the earth shows a flush of green and gold; trees and shrubs are touched with colors more exquisite than in autumn; wild-flowers carpet the woods and fields, and brooks join in the chorus of bird-song.
As the birds appear, it is not difficult to distinguish them, if one begins before the great migration of late April or early May, and goes forth with alert senses and infinite patience and perseverance. With a reliable guide-book, a learner may be reasonably sure of the early migrants, because only certain species of large and confusing families are to be found during March and early April.
In watching birds, a student learns to observe with lightning speed; to note color and comparative size; distinguishing marks such as crests or striped crowns, spots on breast or throat, bars on wings or tail; the length and shape of bill, wings, tail, and legs. He learns also to notice whether the bird walks, runs, hops, or "teeters"; whether its flight is swift or slow, direct like a robin's, undulating like a goldfinch's, soaring like that of hawks and eagles, labored or jerky like woodpeckers', or graceful and "skimming" like that of swallows.
A careful observer notices also whether the bird was seen in a plowed field or a grassy pasture; by a roadside or in a thicket; in an orchard or an open grove; in deep woods or coniferous forests; in a treetop, on a tree-trunk, on the ground; near a stream, a pond, or a marsh; near a sandy or a rocky shore; in an arid region, or among mountains.
A sure means of identification for many species is the song or the call-note. The songs of some birds are similar to those of others, but there is usually a characteristic note or strain. When beginning my study of birds, I traced every sound I could to its source, waited till I saw the author of the note or song, listened till I learned it, could reproduce it, or at least be sure of future recognition. I found that the training of my sense of hearing opened an avenue of enjoyment of which I had been utterly unconscious; many others testify to a similar pleasure. Thoreau speaks repeatedly of his joy in sound and even in silence. Truly the voice of God may thus be heard and His infinite power further revealed.
MIGRATION LISTS
Dates of Arrival of "Summer Visitants" Near New York City
February 15 to 28 Purple Grackle Rusty Blackbird Red-winged Blackbird Robin Winter Residents and Visitants
BIRDS SEEN IN MARCH
_Winter Residents Leaving For The North_ Snowflake Northern Shrike Horned Lark Redpoll
_Migrants Arriving From The South_
Loon 4 species of Ducks
March 1 to 10 Purple Grackle Red-winged Blackbird Rusty Blackbird Robin
March 10 to 20 Phoebe Meadowlark Cowbird Fox Sparrow Woodcock
March 20 to 31 Kingfisher Mourning Dove Swamp Sparrow White-throated Sparrow Wilson's Snipe
BIRDS SEEN IN APRIL
_Winter Residents Leaving For The North_ Junco Tree Sparrow Winter Wren Brown Creeper Red-breasted Nuthatch Golden-crowned Kinglet
_Migrants Arriving From The South_
April 1 to 10 Great Blue Heron Black-crowned Night Heron Osprey Vesper Sparrow Field Sparrow Chipping Sparrow Tree Swallow Myrtle Warbler Hermit Thrush
April 10 to 20 Yellow-bellied Sapsucker Barn Swallow Yellow Palm Warbler Pine Warbler Louisiana Water-thrush Ruby-crowned Kinglet Green Heron
April 20 to 30 Whip-poor-will Chimney Swift Least Flycatcher Towhee Purple Martin Cliff Swallow Bank Swallow Rough-winged Swallow Black and White Warbler Black-throated Green Warbler Brown Thrasher Spotted Sandpiper
BIRDS ARRIVING IN MAY
May 1 to 10 Yellow-billed Cuckoo Black-billed Cuckoo Nighthawk Ruby-throated Hummingbird Crested Flycatcher Kingbird Baltimore Oriole Bobolink Indigo Bunting Rose-breasted Grosbeak Scarlet Tanager Red-eyed Vireo Warbling Vireo Yellow-throated Vireo White-eyed Vireo Blue-winged Warbler Parula Warbler Black-throated Blue Warbler Magnolia Warbler Yellow-breasted Chat Chestnut-sided Warbler Hooded Warbler Yellow Warbler Maryland Yellow-throat Oven-bird Redstart House Wren Catbird Wood Thrush Veery
May 10 to 20 Wood Pewee White-crowned Sparrow Golden-winged Warbler Worm-eating Warbler Blackburnian Warbler Bay-breasted Warbler Black-poll Warbler Wilson's Warbler Canadian Warbler Marsh Wrens Olive-backed Thrush Gray-cheeked Thrush Bicknell's Thrush
SUMMER VISITORS THAT BREED FARTHER SOUTH AND ARE OCCASIONALLY SEEN NEAR NEW YORK
Red-bellied Woodpecker Summer Tanager Carolina Chickadee Blue-gray Gnatcatcher Mockingbird Numerous Water-birds that nest in the Antarctic regions visit our shores during the summer.
FALL MIGRATION
_Summer Residents Leaving For The South_
September 1 to 10 Orchard Oriole Rough-winged Swallow Worm-eating Warbler Blue-winged Warbler
September 10 to 20 Baltimore Oriole Purple Martin Yellow Warbler Yellow-breasted Chat
September 20 to 30 Green Heron Hummingbird Kingbird Crested Flycatcher Wood Pewee Rose-breasted Grosbeak Yellow-throated Vireo Warbling Vireo Hooded Warbler Louisiana Water-thrush Veery
_Migrants Arriving From The North_
September 1 to 10 Black-poll Warbler Connecticut Warbler
September 10 to 20 Wilson's Snipe Olive-backed Thrush Bicknell's Thrush
September 20 to 30 Herring Gull Junco White-throated Sparrow White-crowned Sparrow Myrtle Warbler Yellow Palm Warbler Brown Creeper Golden-crowned Kinglet Ruby-crowned Kinglet Winter Wren Gray-cheeked Thrush
October 1 to 10 Black-crowned Night Heron Yellow-billed Cuckoo Black-billed Cuckoo Chimney Swift Least Flycatcher Bobolink Indigo Bunting Scarlet Tanager Cliff Swallow Barn Swallow Bank Swallow White-eyed Vireo Black and White Warbler Oven-bird Redstart Wood Thrush
October 10 to 20 Spotted Sandpiper Whip-poor-will Nighthawk Red-eyed Vireo Maryland Yellow-throat Catbird Brown Thrasher House Wren Marsh Wren
October 20 to 31 Phoebe Towhee Tree Swallow
_Migrants Arriving From The North_
October 1 to 10 Bronzed Grackle Rusty Blackbird Hermit Thrush Canada Goose Loon Pintail and Mallard Ducks
October 10 to 20 Fox Sparrow
October 20 to 31 Horned Lark Tree Sparrow Snowflake Redpoll Northern Shrike
NOVEMBER
_Migrants Leaving For The South_ Mourning Dove Belted Kingfisher Cowbird Red-winged Blackbird Purple Grackle Vesper Sparrow Chipping Sparrow Field Sparrow
BIRDS SEEN IN DECEMBER
Permanent Residents Winter Residents and Visitants
It is interesting to note that the earliest arrivals in the spring are the last to migrate in the fall. The reason is the food-supply. The insectivorous birds arrive later and leave earlier than those that have a more varied diet. An unusually severe winter sends birds south of their usual winter range.
The dates of migration must necessarily vary with latitude. Migrants arrive near Washington a week or two earlier than near New York City, and near Boston a few days later. The lateness of the spring sometimes causes a delay of a week or two. The May arrivals appear more nearly on schedule. After May 15 birds begin to decrease in number, the "Transient Visitors" passing farther north; by June 5 we have with us our "Permanent Residents" and "Summer Residents."
In the fall the mildness of a season may cause November migrants to remain into December, or an open winter may tempt those that habitually migrate only a short distance to remain north of their usual winter range.
DESCRIPTIONS AND BIOGRAPHIES
THE AMERICAN ROBIN _Thrush Family--Turdidæ_
Length: 10 inches.
Male: Head black; bill yellow; a white spot above and below eye; throat white, streaked with black; back and wings gray; tail black, with white spots near tips of outer feathers; white beneath tail; entire breast and sides reddish-brown; color less brilliant in autumn and winter, and bill darker.
Young Female: Paler than male.
Young: Similar to female, except for speckled breasts and backs.
Call-note: A sharp _tut_, used to express anger or alarm; also a sweet tender note, with which it encourages its young or converses with its mate.
Song: A loud, clear morning song, _Cheer-up, cheer-up, cheer-up, cheer-up_, sweeter and more subdued toward evening. The song varies decidedly with different individuals. Many robins seem to enjoy improvisations; we may hear them sing their somewhat monotonous strain with pleasing variations. During their sojourn in the South they sing but little, and live in flocks remote from human habitations; consequently they are not loved as they are in the North.
Range: North America, breeding from the tree-limit south to the northern part of the Gulf States and Mexican tableland; in winter, to Florida and the highlands of Guatemala.
None of our birds is so well-known and so universally beloved as the robin. He, together with the song sparrow and the bluebird, arrives at a time when we are weary of winter and yearning for spring. He seems to show so much eagerness to return to us that he receives a hearty welcome. He is the first bird that we knew in childhood, unless it be the English sparrow; our earliest books were filled with tales and poems concerning him. Most of us have a fund of anecdotes that we could relate.
A robin has distinct individuality. His is a many-sided nature. He is cheerful and optimistic, aggressive and fearless, pugnacious and ardent--like the brave Lochinvar, "so daring in love and so dauntless in war,"--yet withal tender, joyous, and lovable. He is a fighter at mating time, but a gentle husband.
There are few bird-choruses as sweet as robins' rain-song or even-song. I recall a flock of these happy birds singing from maple-tops in a little village nestled beside a brawling river, when patches of brown earth showed beneath melting snow, and heavy rain-clouds broke away to reveal a golden western sky. The robins sang with the joy that my own heart felt at the renewal of life on the earth. I once heard their even-song in an elm-shaded college-town of Massachusetts during a lovely Sunday evening in June, when church-bells rang and robins held a vesper service all their own. My sister and I walked beneath the great arched trees and found ourselves speaking in whispers, as was our habit in the cathedrals of the Old World.
The robin's _tut-tut_, or _tut-tut-tut'-tut-tut-tut-tut_,--his scolding note,--is very similar to the exclamation of reproof our grandfather used to administer to us for childish misdemeanors. It is amusing to see how robins use this form of remonstrance to humans. John Burroughs wrote that he was kept out of his own summer-house by a female robin that was nesting there. She scolded him so soundly for trespassing upon his own property, which she had appropriated, that he could have no peace. He finally left her in possession till her young had flown.[49] I had a similar experience when picking cherries in a friend's garden. A robin had preceded me and resented my intrusion in no uncertain manner. No angry fishmonger of Billingsgate ever hurled more noisy vituperation at a thief than did that robin fling at me, especially when I coolly refused to heed his commands to "Keep Off."
I recall an amusing experience with a robin family one summer. The second brood of hungry babies were clamoring for "More," and following their overworked father about as I have seen human babies tease their mothers. He was decidedly "frayed" as to temper, but he chose to assume the entire parental responsibility. His faded, bedraggled spouse, perched disconsolately upon the roof of the chicken-house, flew down two or three times into the bosom of the family and endeavored to "do her bit"; but her testy husband drove her off each time with a sharp _tut-tut_, until in despair she remained upon the ridge-pole peeping forlornly. The father proceeded to pull up worms for his gaping brood in a manner so irritated and strenuous that I wondered whether he had had a "family jar," or was only worn out with anxiety and overwork. It is a huge task to feed one baby robin alone, who can eat sixty-eight angleworms a day,[50] or one hundred and sixty-five cutworms.[51]
Robins do good to the soil by dragging forth earthworms and preventing their too rapid increase. Mr. Forbush calls attention to the value of these birds in devouring "dormant cutworms and caterpillars even in February," also quantities of the larvæ of March flies and white grubs that injure grass. The robin is an enemy of caterpillars, especially those that live near the ground; his destruction of cutworms and white grubs alone entitles him to our gratitude. He does eat early cherries, and has been bitterly arraigned for so doing. When later cherries, apples, peaches, pears, and grapes are ripe, wild fruits and mulberries which he eats by preference, have also matured; so on the whole, he does little harm.[52] He is now protected in most of our states.
A Maine robin that had an inordinate love for cherries and garden-raspberries was at first intimidated by a most lifelike, well-set-up scarecrow placed in the garden for his benefit. But he grew wiser as the days passed: he approached the fearful creature and received no harm. Familiarity finally bred contempt, for one day he was discovered perched upon the scarecrow's shoulder eating a raspberry!
Robins become very tame. I once had the pleasure of the companionship of a dear, gentle, little English robin--a bird very different in size and manner from his American cousin--who would come out of the shrubbery whenever I called him. He would approach within two or three feet of my chair, to snatch the soft crumbs that I placed on the ground to lure him. He rewarded me frequently with his delightful little bubbling song.
An American robin during a March ice-storm learned that bread crumbs were to be found upon the window-sill of a house in Cleveland. He flew to the sill frequently. When he found no crumb awaiting him, he would tap on the pane, then fly away a short distance and remain until a fresh supply appeared. He and his mate nested in an apple-tree near by. They and their brood were fed in this way the entire season by their bird-loving friends, until they were in danger of becoming pauperized! One morning the following March while the Cleveland family were breakfasting, they heard the familiar tap upon the pane! There was Robin back again--you may imagine his welcome! For four years, he continued to announce his arrival in the same manner, and to build in the same yard; each year he and his family were supplied with part of their food by their devoted friends. Then ill must have befallen him, for he never returned.
To another Ohio woman came the joy of having a robin enter her room frequently. She had tempted him with crumbs inside a window-sill. One day he perched upon the sewing-machine where she was at work, and sang his sweet song to her, as the busy machine hummed its tune.
A robin's nest is an untidy affair, but it is something that we should miss were it not a part of our environment. Few birds' eggs are more lovely in color than those of the familiar robins'-egg blue, nestled in their grass-lined cup of clay. Olive Thorne Miller wrote of a clever robin that wished to build her nest during an almost rainless spring. She could find no mud, so she waded about in her drinking-dish to wet her legs; she then hopped into the dust, and with her bill scraped the mud off her legs. This she did repeatedly, until she had the necessary amount.[53]
I once saw a mother-robin sheltering her brood during a rainstorm of great violence. Her soft body and outspread wings were pelted by the rain, but she seemed quite oblivious to everything except to keep harm from her young. Her protecting attitude and the look in her bright eyes made as beautiful an expression of mother-love as I ever witnessed.
THE BLUEBIRD _Thrush Family--Turdidæ_
Length: About 6½ to 7 inches.
General Appearance: Upper parts bright blue; under parts reddish-brown; _no crest_.
Male: Head, back, and tail bright blue; wings blue, edged with black; in the fall, edged with reddish-brown; throat, breast, and sides reddish-brown; white from center of breast to tail.
Female: Similar to male, but paler; wings and tail brightest in flight.
Young: Grayish-blue, speckled with whitish; wings and tail bluish.
Call-note: An indescribably sweet rendering of the syllables, _Cheer-e-o_, given usually while the bird is on the wing.
Song: A gentle warble of exceptional sweetness--_whew'-ee, whew'-ee, whew'-ee_, uttered tenderly and pensively.
Habitat: Orchards and gardens. The birds are usually seen in pairs, and like rather conspicuous perches, such as fence-posts and telegraph wires.
Nest: Made of grasses and placed in old hollow trees, preferably apple-trees. One objection raised against tree-surgery is that it deprives bluebirds of nesting-sites, but that objection may be removed by furnishing nesting-boxes.
Range: Eastern North America. Breeds from southern Canada and Newfoundland to the Gulf Coast and Florida, west to the Rockies; winters in the southern half of the eastern U. S., south to Guatemala.
As spring approaches, I invariably "go a-hunting," not for "rabbit-skins," but for song sparrows and bluebirds. Robins usually seek us, and sometimes their blue-winged cousins call _Cheer-e-o_ as they fly swiftly over our housetops; but I am never happy until I have visited an orchard or pasture frequented by these heaven-sent birds. "My heart leaps up when I behold" once more their exquisite blue and hear their soft, delightful warble. Then I know that spring is really on her way, and I am again eager and expectant.
Bluebirds have always been much beloved, especially in New England. Florence Merriam writes: "Although the Bluebird did not come over in the Mayflower, it is said that when the Pilgrim Fathers came to New England this bird was one of the first whose gentle warblings attracted their notice, and, from its resemblance to the beloved Robin Redbreast of their native land, they called it the Blue Robin."[54]
The bluebird has always been a favorite theme for poets and nature-writers, especially in New England, where the beauty and warm coloring of this sweet bird seem exceptionally welcome after a long, severe winter. In Thoreau's diary, "Early Spring in Massachusetts," he refers to the bluebird thirteen times and writes: "The bluebird--angel of the spring! Fair and innocent, yet the offspring of the earth. The color of the sky, above, and of the subsoil beneath, suggesting what sweet and innocent melody, terrestrial melody, may have its birthplace between the sky and the ground."[55]
Burroughs, too, makes frequent mention of the bluebird. In "Under The Maples" he says: "None of our familiar birds endear themselves to us more than does the bluebird. The first bluebird in the spring is as welcome as the blue sky itself. The season seems softened and tempered as soon as we hear his note and see his warm breast and azure wing. His gentle manners, his soft, appealing voice, not less than his pleasing hues, seem born of the bright and genial skies. He is the spirit of April days incarnated in a bird. Not strictly a songster, yet his every note and call is from out the soul of harmony."[56]
Bluebirds are of economic as well as æsthetic value. They devour cutworms and other kinds of caterpillars, grasshoppers, crickets, katydids, and beetles. They eat fruit in the winter; they prefer that taken from pastures, swamps, and hedgerows, rather than from gardens or orchards. They never destroy cultivated crops; on the contrary, benefit them.[57]
These birds are such devoted lovers that one is rarely seen far from its mate. The female is very gentle and timid; she seems to need reassurance and protection. There are times, however, when she knows her own mind and shows firmness of character. A male bluebird in Asheville, N. C., intoxicated by the warmth of a sunshiny January day, wooed a female ardently. She was very distant and finally dismissed him. She evidently had sufficient foresight to realize that it would be disastrous to go to housekeeping so early and therefore withheld her consent.
Numerous instances have been recorded of bluebirds that have lost their mates by accident and have mourned so deeply as to touch the heart of any one who saw the tragedy or heard the cries of sorrow.
THE SONG SPARROW _Finch Family--Fringillidæ_
Length: A little over 6 inches; about the size of the English sparrow.
General Appearance: A small brown bird with a grayish breast, a body heavily streaked with black, _a black spot in the center of breast_, and at each side of the throat.
Male and Female: Brown head with black streaks, a grayish line in center and over eye; brown line back of eye; back brown and gray, streaked with black; wings brown, with black spots,--no white bars; throat grayish-white; _a dark patch on each_ side of throat; _a conspicuous black spot in center of breast_; belly white; sides whitish, streaked with brown and black; tail long, brown, darkest in center.
Call-note: _Chip, chip_--sharp and metallic.
Song: A sweet cheerful strain, with considerable variety in different individuals. It usually consists of three notes that sound like "See? See? See?" followed by a short trill. Henry van Dyke interprets the song as _Sweet, sweet, sweet, very merry cheer_.
Habitat: Bushes; near water, preferably.
Range: North America, east of the Rocky Mts. Breeds in Canada from Great Slave Lake to Cape Breton Island, south to southern Nebraska, central Missouri, Kentucky, southern Virginia, the mountains of North Carolina. Winters from Nebraska, Illinois, Massachusetts (locally) and New Jersey, south to the Gulf Coast.
The Song Sparrow, like air and sunshine, is a part of our daily lives after we have once become acquainted with him. In some localities he takes up his abode permanently; in others, he arrives in late February or early March and remains until November. Joy in life and deep contentment abide with him. He is the most incurable optimist of my acquaintance. I have heard him sing beside a brook that has just broken its icy fetters, while patches of snow still remained on the ground; during days of rain which silenced most songsters; through hot summer noons and during the almost songless molting-season,--nothing seems to daunt him, from early morning until sunset. Occasionally during the night is heard his simple strain, as though he needs must sing in his sleep.
His song is pleasing, but in no way remarkable. It is in a major key and lacks the ecstasy and piercing sweetness of the fox sparrow's, and the exquisite tenderness of the field and the vesper sparrow's, but it possesses a charm all its own. It breathes a joy in simple things--a steadfast and cheerful courage that makes us say, "He, too, is no mean preacher."
Song sparrows, like other members of the Finch family, are of great service in their destruction of insects and weed seeds, of which they consume enormous quantities. They eat wild berries and fruits only when their favorite food is not obtainable. They possess no bad habits and are desirable "bird-neighbors" to cultivate. Water always attracts them; one is most likely to find them near streams, in which they love to bathe.
Their nests are made largely of grasses, dead leaves, and root-fibres, and are lined with soft grasses. They are placed in bushes or on the ground. The eggs, pale in color and flecked with brown, are well concealed by their markings. Song sparrows, usually serene, grow intensely nervous when the nest is approached, and betray its whereabouts by their incessant _Chip, chip_.
THE SONG SPARROW
"See? See? See? The herald of spring you see! What matters if winds blow piercingly! The brook, long ice-bound, struggles through Its glistening fetters, and murmurs anew With joy at the freedom the days will bring When the snow has gone! And I, too, sing!
"See? See? See? A flush of color you see! The tassels are hung on the budding tree, Before it has drawn its curtain of leaves To shade the homes of the birds. Now weaves The silent spring a carpet fair, With wind-flower and hepatica there.
"See? See? See? You are glad to welcome me. You will hear my voice ring cheerfully Through Summer's heat or days of rain Until the winter has come again. From dawn till dusk, my heart is gay, And I sing my happy life away. See? See? See?"
THE FOX SPARROW _Finch Family--Fringillidæ_
Length: A little over 7 inches; about an inch longer than the English sparrow, and nearly as large as a hermit thrush.
Male and Female: Upper parts reddish-brown, _brightest_ on _lower back_ and _tail_. (The red-brown tail is a distinguishing mark of the fox sparrow as it is of the hermit thrush.) Under parts grayish-white; _throat_, _breast_, _belly_, and _sides_ _heavily_ and _irregularly streaked_ with reddish-brown and black, except the middle of the belly, which is white.
Note: A faint _seep_ or _cheep_.
Song: The most beautiful of all the sparrows'--a burst of melody possessing sweetness and power; joyous, yet with a minor strain.
Habitat: Tall thickets or clumps of weeds.
Range: North America. Breeds in the forest-regions of Canada and Alaska; winters from the lower Ohio and Potomac Valleys to central Texas and northern Florida.
Never shall I forget the thrill of surprise and ecstasy which my first fox sparrow brought to me! My sister and I were on eager quest for early migrants in open woods and overgrown pastures, when from a thicket of tall shrubs there burst so marvelous a "concord of sweet sounds" that we were spell-bound. No words can describe the tenderness, the joyous abandon, yet withal the strain of sadness in the song, as though the choristers had drunk deep of life, had visioned clearly its secrets, and transmuted its experiences. When the music had become a soft cadence, we sought the singers, and found a band of thrush like sparrows scratching in the old brown leaves like bantam hens. They remained in the thicket for several days, singing most rapturously toward sunset.
Though shy birds and seen infrequently, fox sparrows occasionally approach houses. During a deep spring snow that covered the birds' natural food-supply, several of these north-bound migrants came three times a day with a flock of juncos to feed on bread-crumbs in our back yard. Like Tommy Tucker, they "sang for their supper." Twice they arrived before a fresh supply of crumbs had been scattered; their songs announced their presence and were accompanied by the gentle trill of the juncos. A large flock remained in Middlesex Fells for several days.
Most bird-lovers consider an experience with fox sparrows as out of the ordinary. Thoreau wrote: "Is not the coming of the fox-colored sparrow something more earnest and significant than I have dreamed of? These migrating sparrows bear all messages that concern my life."[58]
THE PHOEBE _Flycatcher Family--Tyrranidæ_
Length: About 7 inches; a little larger than the English sparrow.
Male and Female: Grayish-brown above; under parts light gray with yellowish wash; breast darker than throat, sides grayish-brown; head dark brown, somewhat crested; bill black, slightly hooked at tip, with bristles at base; wings dark brown, _with inconspicuous whitish wing-bars_; tail dark brown; edge of two outer tail-feathers yellowish-white.
Song: No real song. Flycatchers are songless birds. The note is a hoarse _Phoebe_, sometimes _Pe-wit-Phoebe_. It is usually uttered mournfully and monotonously; occasionally the male gives numerous _Phoebes_ rapidly while on the wing.
Habitat: Near streams preferably. A favorite nesting site is underneath a bridge; eaves of barns or beams of piazzas are also used.
Range: Eastern North America. Breeds from north-central Canada south to northeastern New Mexico, central Texas, northern Mississippi and highlands of Georgia; winters south of latitude 37° to southern Mexico.
When March has lost some of its bluster and gentler weather prevails, there arrives from the land of sunshine and teeming insect life, a small brown and gray bird--the Phoebe, first of the Flycatcher family to come North. Like many of the early migrants, he travels without his beloved little mate, whom he seems to miss sadly; for he sits disconsolately on a bare twig and calls her name in hoarse, wheezy tones. After she appears, it is pleasant to see their devotion, not only to each other, but to the nesting site. How they journey apart the great distance from South to North and find their own especial bridge or barn year after year, is one of the great mysteries.
Their large, loosely-constructed nest is made of moss and mud, lined with soft grass, hair, or feathers. It is usually infested with bird-lice, as I discovered, to my dismay. It is well not to allow phoebes to build where the lice may become a nuisance.
Like all the soberly-dressed flycatchers, phoebes seek conspicuous perches such as posts or dead branches. They have the family habit of ruffling up their head-feathers into a sort of crest, and of jerking their tails frequently, especially when uttering their note. They make unexpected sallies after insects, which their unusually keen eyes can see from dawn until dark.
Phoebes are among our most useful birds, for they destroy injurious beetles, weevils, flies that annoy cattle and horses, house flies, ants, mosquitoes, wasps, spiders, grasshoppers, and numerous other harmful insects.[59] Their soft brown and gray plumage blends with dull March meadows, with the silver sheen of the brooks they love, and with silken pussy-willows and brown willow-boughs.
THE BLACK PHOEBE
The Black Phoebe is found from Texas west to the Pacific coast. It catches flies persistently and well deserves its family name. In appearance it resembles the slate-colored junco, for it has a dusky head, back, wings, tail, and breast, with a white belly. Professor Beal writes of this bird as follows: "The black phoebe has the same habits as its eastern relative, both as to selection of food and nesting sites, preferring for the latter purpose some structure of man, as a shed, or, better still a bridge over a stream of water, and the preference of the black phoebe for the vicinity of water is very pronounced. One may always be found at a stream or pool and often at a watering-trough by the roadside.
"Careful study of the habits of the bird shows that it obtains a large portion of its food about wet places. While camping beside a stream in California the writer took some pains to observe the habits of the black phoebe. The nesting season was over, and the birds had nothing to do but eat. This they appeared to be doing all the time. When first observed in the morning, at the first glimmer of daylight, a phoebe was always found flitting from rock to rock, although it was so dusky that the bird could hardly be seen. This activity was kept up all day. Even in the evening, when it was so dark that notes were written by the aid of the camp fire, the phoebe was still engaged in its work of collecting, though it was difficult to understand how it could catch insects when there was scarcely light enough to see the bird. Exploration of the stream showed that every portion of it was patrolled by a phoebe, that each one apparently did not range over more than twelve or thirteen rods of water, and that sometimes two or three were in close proximity."[60]
THE CROW BLACKBIRD OR PURPLE GRACKLE _American Blackbird Family--Icteridæ_
Length: 12 to 13½ inches. Tail about 5 inches long, nearly the length of that of the blue jay.
General Appearance: A glossy black bird with _yellow eyes_, and a _long tail_ that in flight resembles a pointed fan curving toward the midrib. Blackbirds _walk_ instead of _hopping_.
Male: Black with beautiful iridescence; head, neck, throat, and breast with green, blue, and purple reflections; back and rump purple and green, with iridescent bars; wings and tail purplish; under parts duller.
Female: Duller than male, with less iridescence.
Call-note: A hoarse, loud _Chack_.
Song: A disagreeable grating noise that Mr. Forbush likens to the "rather musical creaking of a rusty hinge." I once noticed the strong resemblance of the sound to the squeaking wheels of farm-wagons that passed near a noisy flock of grackles. Blackbirds always look unhappy and uncomfortable when making their attempt at singing, as though they emitted the sound with great difficulty.
Habitat: Groves of pine and spruce, as dark and gloomy as the birds themselves. They are found in parks and meadows, on lawns and near buildings. They live in large flocks except at nesting time.
Range: Middle Atlantic coast-region of the United States. Breed from north shore of Long Island Sound (rarely in Massachusetts), the middle Hudson Valley west to the Alleghanies, and south to the uplands of Georgia, Alabama, and eastern Tennessee; winter mainly south of the Delaware Valley. The Bronzed and Florida grackles extend the range over the whole of eastern North America, to Great Slave Lake, Newfoundland, Colorado, and Florida.
It seems incredible that blackbirds should belong to the same family as sweet-voiced meadowlarks, gay bobolinks, and musical orioles. They are literally the "black sheep" of the family, with a plumage in keeping with their dark deeds, and a sinister expression that arouses suspicion and wins them few friends. Their habit of destroying birds' eggs and young birds makes them a terror to their neighbors. Dr. Frank Chapman humorously says that he "can imagine bird-mothers frightening their young into obedience by threatened visits from that ogre, the Grackle."[61] I saw a flock of them invading the seclusion of Wade Park, Cleveland, one spring morning. Two irate robins drove three bandit blackbirds away from their nest with loud cries and swift pursuit. A few minutes later, I saw a wood thrush attack a grackle. She administered a severe blow upon his shoulder, which disarranged his feathers and left him in such evident pain as to be quite oblivious of my proximity. This habit of devastating nests is not, however, so general as has been supposed, for Professor Beal reports that "remains of birds and birds' eggs amount to less than half of one per cent. of his diet."[62]
During the breeding season, grackles do much good by their destruction of insects upon which their young are almost wholly fed. They devour beetles, the caterpillars of gypsy and brown-tail moths, cutworms, grasshoppers, and locusts in great numbers. They "follow the plow" in search of the grubs and worms to be found in the up-turned earth.
Grackles are in great disfavor, however, because of the grain they consume. Professor Beal states that grain is eaten during the entire year except for a short time in the summer. Waste kernels are consumed during winter and early spring, but that eaten in July and August is probably standing grain. Middle-western farmers suffer considerably.[63]
It is interesting to see blackbirds migrate. They fly in flocks thousands strong. Mr. Forbush tells of a flock which formed a black "rainbow of birds" that stretched from one side of the horizon to the other. There seemed to be "millions" of them.
They fly with wonderful precision, like a well-trained army bent on destruction. They are truly "Birds of a feather" that "flock together" with a kind of joyless loyalty, disliked by most of the world.
THE BRONZED GRACKLE
The Bronzed Grackle, like the Purple Grackle, has a purple head, but has a _bronzed back without iridescent bars_. It is found in central and eastern North America from Great Slave Lake to Newfoundland in Canada, south to Montana and Colorado, (east of the Rockies), and southeast to the northern part of the Gulf States, western Pennsylvania, New York, and Massachusetts. It winters mainly from the Ohio Valley to southern Texas.
THE FLORIDA GRACKLE
The Florida Grackle is abundant from South Carolina to Florida, and west along the Gulf Coast to southeastern Texas. It is similar to the Purple Grackle in appearance, but is smaller in size. Flocks of these grackles frequent groves of palmettoes and live-oaks.
THE BOAT-TAILED GRACKLE
The Boat-tailed Grackle, the largest member of the blackbird family, (16 inches long), has wonderful violet reflections on head and neck. The female is much smaller and is brownish. This grackle is found in the South Atlantic and Gulf States from Chesapeake Bay to Florida and west to the eastern coast of Texas, and like the red-winged blackbird seems to prefer the vicinity of water.
THE RED-WINGED BLACKBIRD _American Blackbird Family--Icteridæ_
Length: About 9½ inches; length varies in different individuals.
Male: Jet black, except shoulders, which are _scarlet_ edged with _yellow_; plumage mottled in winter--upper parts edged with rusty brown; bill long, sharp-pointed, black; legs and feet black; eyes dark.
Female: Head and back blackish, rusty brown, and buff. Light streak over and under eye; throat yellowish; under parts streaked with black and white; wings brown, edged with buff; tail brown. Plumage inconspicuous, but attractive on close inspection.
Young Males: Similar to females, but with red and black shoulders.
Call-Note: A hoarse _chuck_ resembling that of the grackle.
Song: A liquid, pleasant _o-ka-ree_.
Habitat:
In meadows where a streamlet flows Or sedges rim a pool, There swings upon a blade of green Beside the waters cool, A bird of black, with "epaulets" Of red and gold. With glee He plays upon his "Magic Flute": "_O-o-ka-ree? O-o-ka-ree?_"
Nest: A beautiful structure, long and deep, fastened to reeds; a "hanging" nest.
Eggs: Pale bluish, with inky scrawls and spots.
Range: North America, east of the Great Plains, except the Gulf Coast and Florida; abundant where there are marshes and ponds; winters mainly south of Ohio and Delaware Valleys.
When the hylas begin to pipe in the spring, they are joined by the musical Redwings. The voices of these birds have been likened to flutes, also to violincellos in an orchestra. Their song is pleasant to hear, but seems to require considerable effort on the part of the performers--they lift their shoulders and spread their tails into broad fans when singing.
Redwings are noisy chatterers; they are intensely social in their nature. It is thought that some males have several wives at a time--one marvels at their courage! During the winter the females flock by themselves, and in the spring migrate about two weeks after their venturesome, prospective husbands have come northward. When they arrive, there is great "Confusion of Tongues"--the marsh is transformed into a Babel. Then sites for homes are selected, and house-building begins in earnest. Blackbirds make devoted parents.
They are much more popular than their cousins, the grackles, though in some localities where they are very abundant, as in the Upper Mississippi Valley, they are in disfavor because of the grain they devour. They eat oats, corn, and wheat, but only one-third as much as do the grackles; they eat the seeds of smartweed and barnyard grass in preference. Grasshoppers they consider great delicacies, also many other harmful insects.[64] Professor Beal states that nearly seven-eighths of their food consists of weed seed and insects injurious to agriculture. He pleads for their protection as does Mr. Forbush, who says: "Should there be an outbreak of cankerworms in an orchard, the blackbirds will fly at least half a mile to get them for their young."[65] They eat little fruit and do slight harm to garden or orchard. On the whole, they are beneficial to mankind.
The RUSTY BLACKBIRD and the YELLOW-HEADED BLACKBIRD are two other species of blackbirds.
The RUSTY BLACKBIRD resembles both the purple grackle and the redwing. It is more nearly uniformly glossy black in summer than the former; it is rusty in winter like the latter. It is about the size of the redwing and has a sweeter voice. It is sometimes mistaken for the grackle; but its smaller size, its shorter, rounder tail, and more musical voice differentiate it.
The YELLOW-HEADED BLACKBIRD, our western species, is easy to identify because of his yellow head, neck, throat, and breast, and his black body, with white wing-patches. The female has a paler yellow head, which, with the breast, is marked with white.
The Yellowhead lives in swamps of the Mississippi Valley from Indiana westward to California. He is attractive to see, but not pleasant to hear. He, too, is a grain-thief and therefore unpopular.
THE COWBIRD _American Blackbird Family--Icteridæ_
Length: About 8 inches.
Male: Glossy black, with a brown head, neck, and breast; some metallic reflections on body, tail, and upper wing-feathers. _Smaller than the grackle_, with a shorter tail, less iridescence, and _dark eyes_. Like the grackle, the cowbird is a walker.
Female: Dark brown, with a grayish tinge; under parts lighter, especially the throat, which has two dark streaks outlining the light patch.
Call-note: A loud _chuck_.
Song: No real song, only a disagreeable gurgle, that is emitted with great effort.
Habitat: Pastures and open woodlands; usually seen on the ground, but sometimes in trees.
Range: North America. Breeds in central Canada, south to northern California, Nevada, northern New Mexico, Texas, Louisiana, and North Carolina; winters from southeast California and the Ohio and Potomac Valleys to the Gulf Coast and Central Mexico.
The four common black birds--crows, grackles, redwings, and cowbirds--all have sins laid at their doors. Crows and blackbirds are grain-thieves and destroyers of the eggs and young of other birds; redwings have been accused of polygamy and theft; but if judged by human standards, none compare with cowbirds in what might be called moral degeneracy. Cowbirds not only mate promiscuously, but unlike blackbirds, have no regard for their own young. They are like the human mothers who lay their babies on doorsteps, depart, and let others rear them.
It is a well-known fact that the female cowbird always selects the nest of a bird smaller and weaker than herself in which to deposit her egg. Major Bendire lists ninety-one varieties of birds that have been thus outraged, frequent victims being the song sparrow, indigo bunting, parula warbler, yellow warbler, vireo, chipping sparrow, towhee, oven-bird, yellow-breasted chat, and even the tiny blue-gray gnatcatcher. From one to seven cowbirds' eggs have been found at a time in other birds' nests, often in the warm center of the nest. Unless the little bird should build a new floor, or abandon her nest entirely, the cowbird egg will hatch first, and the lusty changeling will demand the lion's share of food and attention. Frequently the other eggs do not hatch; if they do, the young birds often perish with hunger and cold. When young cowbirds have been reared by their patient little foster-parents, they leave their benefactors and join flocks of their disreputable relatives.
In justice it must be said that cowbirds, like all villains, have a redeeming trait--they are great destroyers of weed seeds and insects. Like Cadmus and his band, they "Follow the Cow," and enjoy the insects that she arouses as she walks about in pastures. When the cow lies down, they, too, pause; they have been known to hop upon her back in friendly fashion. Self-interest prompts them, however, for they know that they may find there a harvest of insects.
THE MEADOWLARK Called also Field Lark and Old Field Lark _American Blackbird Family--Icteridæ_
Length: About 10¾ inches, a little larger than the robin; bill 1½ inches.
General Appearance: A large brown bird, with a _short tail that shows conspicuous white feathers_ at each side in flight. The bright yellow breast crossed by a black crescent is less frequently seen.
Male and Female: Upper parts dark brown, mottled with black and buff; head striped, with a light line through the center and a yellow line over each eye, alternating with two dark stripes; cheeks gray; throat, breast, and belly yellow; a V-shaped band on breast; sides and lower part of belly whitish, streaked with black; bill long and sharp; tail short, (about 3 inches); outer tail-feathers almost entirely white; middle feathers brown, barred with black.
Call-note: A sharp nasal _Yerk_, and a twitter that sounds like a succession of rapid sneezes.
Song: A loud, clear, sweet refrain that usually consists of four syllables, but sometimes of five or six. It has been interpreted in various ways as follows:
_Spring'-of--the-y-e'-a-r! I love--you d-e-a-r. I'm Mead'-ow-lar'-rk._
Mr. T. Gilbert Pearson tells of a lazy darky down South who interpreted the lark's song as
"_Laziness-will kill' you._"[66]
Flight: Direct, yet fluttering; usually away from the observer, showing the brown back and white tail-feathers, as though the bird was conscious of its bright yellow breast.
Habitat: Cultivated meadows, and grassgrown fields, especially one containing a running brook for drinking and bathing. Its fondness for unmown fields has given it the name of "Old Field Lark."[67]
Range: Eastern North America. Breeds from eastern Minnesota and southern Canada, south to northern Texas, Missouri, and North Carolina, and west to western Iowa, eastern Kansas, and northwestern Texas; winters regularly from southern New England and Ohio valley south to the Gulf States, and north locally to the Great Lakes and southern Maine.
In the South, from southern Illinois, southwestern Indiana and North Carolina to the coast of Texas, Louisiana, and southern Florida is found the SOUTHERN MEADOWLARK, smaller and darker than the northern species, and with a different song.
In the West, from British Columbia to Manitoba and south to southern California, northern Mexico, and Texas is the WESTERN MEADOWLARK, similar to its eastern relative in habits and plumage, but very different as to song. Its pure, sweet, liquid notes are among my most delightful memories of western birds.
It is fortunate that no human being or bird is possessed of all the virtues and charms, and that every individual may hold his own place in our interest and affections. As the spring migrants arrive, each receives a welcome peculiarly his own.
"The lark is so brimful of gladness and love-- The green fields below him, the blue sky above, That he sings and he sings and forever sings he, 'I love my love, and my love loves me.'"[68]
His voice, clear and sweet, rings out joyously across the fields, fragrant with up-turned earth and bright with sunshine. He is the delight of spring meadows as Bob White is of summer fields.
The meadowlark has many friends: those who love him for his winning ways--his brightness, cheerfulness, and devotion to his family; epicures, ignorant of his value or fond only of their own pleasure; and people who realize that he is of enormous economic importance.
He was formerly believed to be a destroyer of grain. He was accused of pulling up as much corn and oats as crows, and of eating clover seed; but he is now recognized as "one of the most useful allies of agriculture, standing almost without a peer as a destroyer of noxious insects."[69]
So untiring is he in his search, that he uses his long sharp bill, even while snow is on the ground, to probe the earth for larvæ. He rids the fields of grasshoppers, crickets, beetles, caterpillars, flies, spiders, and "thousand-legs." Grasshoppers are his favorite delicacy. Professor Beal states that these insects form three-fourths of the meadowlark's food during August. He eats also large numbers of the white grubs of beetles "which are among the worst enemies of many cultivated crops, notably grasses and grains, and to a less extent of strawberries and garden vegetables."[69]
Like the quail, meadowlarks destroy weed seeds, which are eaten mostly in winter. When insects are obtainable, they are greatly preferred.
A search for a meadowlark's nest is an exciting adventure that keeps one alert. It is usually found by accident, perhaps after the wary builder has ceased trying to deceive the searcher. A sight of the speckled eggs or young fledglings in their cozy home with a grass-arched doorway is not soon forgotten.
Unlike quail, baby meadowlarks are unable to run about as soon as they are out of the egg, but remain for two weeks in their cleverly camouflaged home, where they are often the prey of snakes and other enemies. Meadowlarks are now being widely protected, for many farmers regard them as one of their greatest assets.
THE NORTHERN FLICKER OR GOLDEN-WINGED WOODPECKER _Woodpecker Family--Picidæ_
Length: About 12 inches; one of our largest common birds.
General Appearance: A large brown bird with a _red patch on the back_ of the _head_, _conspicuous white rump_ and _yellow lining_ of _wings_, which distinguish it from the brown meadowlark with its white tail-feathers.
Male: Top of head and neck gray; a _crescent_ of _red across nape_; cheeks and throat pinkish-brown, separated by _black patches_; strong bill 1½ inches long; under parts pinkish-brown and white, _heavily spotted with black_; a _black crescent_ separates throat and breast. Back and upper wing-feathers a grayish-brown, _barred with black_; large white patch at rump very conspicuous in flight; upper tail-coverts black and white; tail black above, yellow underneath.
Female: Like male, except for the _absence of black patches at the sides of the throat_.
Notes: A loud _che-ack'_; also a note which Mr. Frank M. Chapman says "can be closely imitated by the swishing of a willow-wand: _weechew, weechew, weechew_."[70] Flickers drum frequently on boughs, also, and give a loud, rapid _flick, flick, flick, flick, flick, flick, flick, flick, flicker_,--which may be called, by courtesy, their song.
Habitat: Open woods, fields, orchards, and gardens, where trees or ant-hills are to be found.
Range: Northern and eastern North America. Breeds in the forested regions of Alaska and Canada; in the United States east of the Rockies and southward to the Gulf Coast and Texas in the winter. Resident in the U. S. except in the more northern parts.
The SOUTHERN FLICKER, a resident as far south as southern Florida and central Texas, is _smaller_ and _darker_ than the Northern Flicker.
The RED-SHAFTED FLICKER, a western species, has _red cheek-patches_ instead of _black_, _red wing_ and _tail_ feathers, instead of _yellow_; it _lacks_ the _red band_ on the _head_. It is found in the Rocky Mt. and Pacific Coast regions from British Columbia to Mexico, and east to western Texas, Nebraska, and South Dakota. In regions where the northern flicker also is found, these two species have hybridized. In the National Museum of Washington there are numerous specimens of these hybrids, where the red and black cheek-patches, the red and yellow wing-feathers and red band on the head appear in various unusual combinations.
The Flicker is a bird of distinction. A glimpse of him at once arouses interest, curiosity, and a desire for further acquaintance. He is handsome, well set up, full of vitality and power--the personification of efficiency.
We like his cheerful voice--a trifle too loud for a gentleman of refinement, but a welcome sound in the season when the whole world wishes to shout with joy at the release from winter's confinement. Thoreau wrote: "Ah, there is the note of the first flicker, a prolonged, monotonous _wick-wick-wick-wick-wick-wick_, etc., or, if you please, _quick, quick, quick_, heard far over and through the dry leaves. But how that single sound peoples and enriches all the woods and fields. They are no longer the same woods and fields that they were. This note really quickens what was dead. It seems to put life into the withered grass and leaves and bare twigs, and henceforth the days shall not be as they have been. It is as when a family, your neighbors, return to an empty house after a long absence, and you hear the cheerful hum of voices and the laughter of children.... So the flicker makes his voice ring.... It is as good as a house-warming to all nature."[71]
We cannot repress a smile as we watch this golden-winged woodpecker striving to make a favorable impression upon Miss Flicker. He and a group of rivals take amusing, awkward attitudes, make a variety of noisy but pleasant calls, and without any ill-tempered quarreling, select their mates and "live happily ever after."
Though a woodpecker, the flicker departs from family habits and traditions by seeking his livelihood on the ground in preference to tree-trunks. He is a foe to the industrious ant that we were taught to admire along with the "busy bee." But ants destroy timber, infest houses, and cause the spread of aphids that are enemies of garden plants; therefore the ant's destroyer, the flicker, is a neighborhood benefactor and deserves our heartfelt protection. Professor Beal reports finding 3,000 ants in the stomach of each of two flickers and fully 5,000 in that of another.[72] These insects form almost half of this bird's food. His long, sticky tongue is especially adapted to their capture. He likes grasshoppers, crickets, beetles, and caterpillars, and while he enjoys fruit, he takes little that is of any value to man.
Most northern flickers migrate. They remain during the winter in some localities, as Cape Cod, where food is sufficiently abundant. Mr. Forbush tells of flickers that have bored holes in summer cottages on the Cape, and spent the winters in rooms which they damaged by their habit of "pecking." He states that bird-boxes containing large entrances placed on the outside of the houses or on the trees near by, would have prevented those flickers from forming the "criminal habit of breaking and entering."[73] Red-Shafted Flickers have also been found guilty of the same crime, and have entered not only dwellings, but school-houses and church steeples.[74]
Though rather shy birds, they often approach inhabited houses and frequently cause amusing situations because of their regular drumming on roof or wall. In Florida, a young woman whom I know was once aroused from her early morning's sleep by a flicker's knock, and drowsily responded with a "Come in." A friend and I, spending a week-end in an Ohio summer cottage that possessed no alarm-clock, asked to be called in time for a very early boat. We heard a knocking, arose, dressed quietly to avoid disturbing the household, and then found that our summons had come from flickers on the roof, and that we had lost about two hours of precious morning's sleep.
Flickers have more local names than almost any other bird. Over one hundred names have been recorded, of which "Yellowhammer," and "Golden-winged Woodpecker," are perhaps most common.
THE RED-HEADED WOODPECKER _Woodpecker Family--Picidæ_
Length: About 9¾ inches; nearly as large as a robin.
General Appearance: A black and white bird _with entire head and neck bright red_.
Male and Female: Head, neck, throat, and upper part of the breast brilliant red; upper part of back and wings black; longer wing-feathers or primaries also black; lower back and secondary wing-feathers white; under parts white; tail pointed, black, margined with white. In flight, the areas of red, black, and white are very distinct.
Young: Brown heads and necks, mottled with black; upper parts of backs barred with light brown. The other parts of their bodies resemble those of their parents.
Note: No song, but a loud, cheerful _Quir-r-r-k? Quir-r-r-k?_ and a drumming sound, similar to that made by other woodpeckers.
Habitat: Open woods, groves of beeches preferred.
Nest: In hollow tree-trunks or telegraph-poles.
Range: From southeastern British Columbia, to Ontario, south to the Gulf Coast, and from central Montana, Colorado, and Texas east to the valleys of the Hudson and Delaware; rare in New England. Irregularly migratory in the northern parts of its range.
This conspicuous bird is one of the handsomest members of the Woodpecker family. He is the only one really entitled to the name of Red-Headed Woodpecker. His male relatives wear only small skull-caps placed on their crowns at various angles; he possesses a sort of toboggan-cap pulled down over his head and tucked into his black coat and white vest-front.
Many stories and legends are told of this woodpecker. He is the delight of children in localities where he is to be found. I remember how I used to look for the red hood and the black shawl worn over a white dress, especially noticeable in flight. I never tired of watching one of these birds approach his nest in a tall dead tree with food in his mouth. At a signal from him, his wife's red head would appear in the doorway. She would emerge; he would then enter and remain with the children until her return.
Redheads have not been popular with farmers, who have accused them of various crimes. They have been caught eating small fruit and corn on the ear, destroying both the eggs and young of other birds, and boring holes in telegraph-poles in which to build their nests. While individuals may be guilty of such misdemeanors, the redheads are probably neither so black nor so gory, except in plumage, as they are painted.
These woodpeckers are not such persistent destroyers of insects as others of their family. They have a decided preference for beetles, but eat fewer ants and larvæ than do the Downy and Hairy woodpeckers. They are exceptionally fond of vegetable food; their preference for beechnuts is very great. Dr. C. Hart Merriam states that in northern New York, where the redhead is one of the commonest woodpeckers, it subsists almost exclusively on beechnuts during the fall and winter, even pecking the green nuts before they are ripe and while the trees are still covered with leaves. He has shown that these woodpeckers invariably remain throughout the winter after good nut-yields and migrate whenever the nut-crop fails.[75]
"In central Indiana during a good beechnut year, from the time the nuts began to ripen, the redheads were almost constantly on the wing; passing from the beeches to some place of deposit. They hid the nuts in almost every conceivable situation. Many were placed in cavities in partly decayed trees; and the felling of an old beech was certain to provide a feast for the children. Large handfuls were taken from a single knot hole. They were often found under a patch of raised bark, and single nuts were driven into cracks in the bark. Others were thrust into cracks in gate-posts; and a favorite place of deposit was behind long slivers on fence-posts. In a few cases grains of corn were mixed with beechnuts. Nuts were often driven into cracks in the end of railroad ties, and the birds were often seen on the roofs of houses pounding nuts into crevices between the shingles. In several instances the space formed by a board springing away from a fence was nearly filled with nuts, and afterwards pieces of bark and wood were brought and driven over the nuts as if to hide them from poachers."[76]
In summer, Dr. Merriam has seen the redheads "make frequent sallies into the air after passing insects, which were almost invariably secured." He has also seen them catch grasshoppers on the ground in a pasture.
They are cheerful, active birds, with a call like that of a giant tree-toad. Their brilliant plumage has unfortunately made them a good target for sportsmen.
THE RED-BELLIED WOODPECKER _Woodpecker Family--Picidæ_
Length: About 9½ inches.
Male: _Crown of head and back of neck bright red_, resembling slightly that of the red-headed woodpecker, but _throat and cheeks gray_; back and wings barred with white, the barring reminding one of the flicker. _Under parts gray mashed with red_; tail black and white; upper tail-coverts white, streaked with black.
Female: _Crown gray, nostrils and neck bright red._
Notes: Mr. Frank Chapman writes of this woodpecker: "It ascends a tree in a curious, jerky fashion, accompanying each upward move by a hoarse _chu-chu_. It also utters _k-r-r-r-ring_ roll and, when mating, a _whicker_ call like that of the Flicker."[77]
Habitat: Open woods of deciduous trees and conifers; also groves of live-oak, palmettoes, and other southern trees, where these birds may be seen in company with flickers.
Range: From southern Canada and eastern United States southward; abundant in the Southern States; rare in New England; is found in western New York and south-western Pennsylvania, and Delaware, south to central Texas and the Gulf States.
Professor Beal made the following report regarding this woodpecker: "The red-bellied woodpecker ranges over the eastern United States as far west as central Texas and eastern Colorado and as far north as New York, southern Ontario, Michigan, and southern Minnesota. It breeds throughout this range and appears to be irregularly migratory. It appears to go north of its breeding range sometimes to spend the winter. Four stomachs, collected in November and December, were received from Canada, and in eight years' residence in central Iowa the writer found the species abundant every winter, but never saw one in the breeding season. It is rather more of a forest bird than some of the other woodpeckers, but is frequently seen in open or thinly timbered country. In the northern part of its range it appears to prefer deciduous growth, but in the South is very common in pine forests.
"Ants are a fairly constant article of diet. The most are taken during the warmer months. Evidently this bird does not dig all the ants which it eats from decaying wood, like the downy woodpecker, but, like the flickers, collects them from the ground and the bark of trees.
"In Florida, the bird has been observed to eat oranges to an injurious extent. It attacks the over-ripe fruit and pecks holes in it and sometimes completely devours it. The fruit selected is that which is dead ripe or partly decayed, so it is not often that the damage is serious. The bird sometimes attacks the trunks of the orange trees as well as others and does some harm. The contents of the stomachs, however, show that wild fruits are preferred, and probably only when these have been replaced by cultivated varieties is any mischief done."[78]
THE YELLOW-BELLIED SAPSUCKER _Woodpecker Family--Picidæ_
Length: About 8½ inches, larger than the Downy, and smaller than the Red-headed woodpecker.
General Appearance: A medium-sized bird, with _bars_, _stripes_, and _patches_ of black and white. The _scarlet crown_, the _black band across_ the _breast_, and the _scarlet throat_ of the males are distinguishing marks.
Male: Crown and throat bright red; bill long; head with broad black and white stripes, extending to neck. The black stripe beginning at bill unites with a _black crescent that encloses red throat_. _Breast_ and _belly light yellow_; sides gray, streaked with black; back black, barred with white; wings black, with _large white patches_, white bars, and spots; _middle_ tail-feathers, white and black; outer tail-feathers mostly black.
Female: Resembles male, but throat is usually white instead of scarlet.
Young: Similar to parents, but with dull blackish crowns, whitish throats, and brownish-gray breasts.
Notes: A faint call-note; a ringing call, consisting of several similar notes.
Habitat: Tree-trunks, into which these birds drill holes and thus kill the trees.
Range: Eastern North America. Breeds from the tree-belt of Canada to northern Missouri, Indiana, Ohio, mountains of Massachusetts and North Carolina; winters from Pennsylvania and Ohio Valley to the Gulf Coast, Bahamas, Cuba, and Costa Rica.
The Yellow-bellied Sapsucker is the renegade of the woodpecker family--the transgressor that has called down anathemas upon all his tribe. He does more damage in some localities than others. Mr. Forbush reports that while the sapsucker has undoubtedly killed trees in northern New England where he breeds, yet in thirty years he has done no appreciable harm in Massachusetts.
Dr. Henry Henshaw, formerly Chief of the Biological Survey, writes: "The Yellow-bellied Sapsucker, unlike other woodpeckers, does comparatively little good and much harm." Mr. Henshaw reports 250 kinds of trees known to have been attacked by sapsuckers and left with "girdles of holes" or "blemishes known as bird-pecks, especially numerous in hickory, oak, cypress, and yellow poplar."[79]
The experience of Dr. Sylvester Judd at Marshall Hall, Maryland, was as follows: "In the summer of 1895 there was on the Bryan farm a little orchard of nine apple trees, about twelve years old, that appeared perfectly healthy. In the fall sapsuckers tapped them in many places, and during spring and fall of the next four years they resorted to them regularly for supplies of sap. Observations were made (October 15, 1896) of two sapsuckers in adjoining trees of the orchard. From a point twenty feet distant they were watched for three hours with powerful glasses to see whether they fed to any considerable extent on ants or other insects that were running over the tree-trunks. In that time one bird seized an ant and the other snapped at some flying insect. One drank sap from the holes thirty and the other forty-one times. Later in the day, one drilled two new holes and the other five. The holes were made in more or less regular rings about the trunk, one ring close above another, for a distance of six to eight inches. The drills were about a quarter of an inch deep, and penetrated the bark and the outer part of the wood.
"In November, 1900, seven of the nine trees were dead and the others were dying. The loss of sap must have been an exhausting drain, but it was not the sole cause of death. Beetles of the flat-headed apple-borer, attracted by the exuding sap, had oviposited in the holes, and the next generation, having thus gained an entrance, had finished the deadly work begun by the sapsuckers."[80]
Mr. W. L. McAtee, of the Biological Survey, made the following report on sapsuckers: "These birds have short, brushy tongues not adapted to the capture of insects, while the other woodpeckers have tongues with barbed tips which can be extended to spear luckless borers or other insects whose burrows in the wood have been reached by their powerful beaks. The sapsuckers practically do not feed on wood-borers or other forest enemies. Their chief insect food is ants. About 15 per cent. of their diet consists of cambium and the inner bark of trees, and they drink a great deal of sap.
"The parts of the tree injured by sapsuckers are those that carry the rich sap which nourishes the growing wood and bark. Sapsucker pecking disfigures ornamental trees, giving rise to pitch streams, gummy excrescences, and deformities of the trunks. Small fruit trees, especially the apple, are often killed, and whole young orchards have been destroyed.
"These birds inflict much greater financial loss by producing defects in the wood of the far larger number of trees which they work upon but do not kill. Blemishes frequently render the trees unfit for anything except coarse construction and fuel.
"Hickory trees are favorites of sapsuckers. It is estimated that about 10 per cent. of the merchantable material is left in the woods on account of bird pecks. On this basis the annual loss on hickory is about $600,000. To this must be added the loss on timber by the manufacturer."[81]
It is no wonder that war has been declared upon sapsuckers; but it is very sad that because of a lack of careful observation of the distinctive markings of tree-trunk birds, many useful woodpeckers, especially the Downy and Hairy, have been sacrificed.
Downy and Hairy Woodpeckers may be readily identified by a _broad white stripe_ extending down the _center_ of the _back_, a _small patch_ of _red_ on the _back_ of the head, _pure white throats_ and _breasts_, and wings _barred_ with white. A _red forehead_ and _crown_ (and red throat of males), a _black crescent across_ the _breast_, _large white patches_ on the _wings_, a _back_ with _black_ and _white bars instead of a white streak_, differentiate this sapsucker from the Downy and Hairy woodpeckers. The yellow belly is not a conspicuous "field-mark."
There are several species of sapsucker in the West. The YELLOW-BELLIED is found in western Texas; the RED-NAPED SAPSUCKER in the Rocky Mt. region, from British Columbia to northwestern Mexico, and from Colorado and Montana to the Cascade and Sierra Nevada Mts.; the RED-BREASTED SAPSUCKER in the Canadian forests of the _Pacific Coast region_, from Alaska to Lower California, east to the Cascades and Sierra Nevadas; and the WILLIAMSON SAPSUCKER, from the eastern slopes of the Rocky Mts. westward to the Pacific, and from Arizona and New Mexico to British Columbia.[82] The last-named species is a great devourer of ants.
THE MOURNING DOVE _Pigeon Family--Columbidæ_
Length: Nearly 12 inches; tail 5½ inches.
General Appearance: A large, plump, grayish-brown bird, with a small head, a _black mark below the ear_, and a _long pointed tail_, in contrast to the round, fan-shaped tail of tame pigeons.
Male: Upper parts a soft grayish-brown, except the head, which is bluish-gray on the crown, with a pinkish-buff forehead, and the wings, which have long, gray primaries. _Sides of neck beautifully iridescent_, with a _small black spot below_ the _ear_, an identification-mark; black spots on the lower part of breast and wings; breast with a pinkish tinge, and underneath the tail pale yellow; tail long and sharply pointed when the bird is at rest. In flight, it resembles the jay's in shape; the middle feathers are brown, like the back; outer feathers largely white; others brown, tipped with white and banded with black; feet and legs red.
Female: Duller than male, with less iridescence on neck.
Note: A soft, monotonous _coo-oo-a-coo-o-o_, uttered mournfully and with great tenderness. The sound is pleasing to some people, but unendurable to others.
Habitat: Open woodlands, or fields bordered with trees.
Range: North America. Breeds chiefly from southern Canada throughout the United States and Mexico; winters from southern Oregon, Colorado, the Ohio Valley, and North Carolina to Panama; casual in winter in the Middle States.
Mourning doves, whose "billing and cooing" have become proverbial, are as devoted pairs of lovers as may be found in the bird-world. The ardent male appears to seek the society of none except his loving mate. She seems perfectly satisfied with his attentions and evidently gives him her whole heart.
Madame Dove is a very inefficient housekeeper. Her nest, built of rough sticks, and notoriously ill-constructed--is a sort of platform on which two white eggs are laid. It is a wonder that they remain in safety long enough to be hatched, for the nests are often not more than ten feet from the ground. Were not her twin-babies as phlegmatic as their parents, they might roll out of bed and come to an untimely end.
It is fortunate that the easy-going mother does not need to prepare the bountiful repasts her family demand. She and her husband select a home-site near fields where weeds abound and where grain is raised. The family gorge themselves upon seeds until they almost burst. Mr. Charles Nash says that "these birds are often so full of seeds that, if a bird is shot, the crop bursts open when it strikes the ground."[83]
They are of enormous economic value. Their food is almost entirely vegetable, and consists largely of the seeds of weeds that a farmer must pay to have destroyed or work hard to eradicate. Doves frequent fields of wheat, corn, buckwheat, rye, oats, and barley, but the grain they destroy is only a third of their food, and consists largely of waste kernels, according to the reports of the Department of Agriculture.[84] They like many varieties of infinitesimal seeds that are eschewed by other birds; as many as 9200 seeds have been found in the stomach of one dove.
These birds have an unerring instinct for fresh water. With a peculiar, whistling sound, they fly at nightfall to a spring or pool for a cool drink before retiring. Hunters are said to have watched them and thus found springs for their needs.[85]
Doves eat quantities of gravel to aid in the digestion of their epicurean feasts. They are fond of dust-baths. They also indulge in queer, senseless-looking acrobatic performances, which appear like attempts at gymnastics.
THE BELTED KINGFISHER _Kingfisher Family--Alcedinidæ_
Length: About 13 inches--a rather large, stocky bird.
General Appearance: A large bluish-gray and white bird, with a _very large crested head_, a _long bill_, and a short tail.
Male: Bluish-gray above, becoming darker on the wings; a ragged-looking crest on an unusually large head; a white spot in front of each large dark eye; small flecks on the wings; tail bluish-gray, flecked and barred with white; _throat white_, a _band_ of _white extending nearly around the_ neck; a _broad band_ of _bluish-gray extending across the breast_; under parts white, except the sides, which are bluish-gray; feet relatively small, but with long, strong nails.
Female: Similar to the male, except for a _band_ of _reddish-brown across the breast_, extending to the sides, and forming a fourth belt; a white belt at the throat, then gray, white, and reddish-brown belts. Unlike most birds, the female kingfisher is more highly colored than the male.
Note: A long harsh rattle, similar to the sound made by two bones or smooth sticks in the hands of a boy, or to the noise of a policeman's rattle.
Habitat:
"By a wooded stream or a clear cool pond, Or the shores of a shining lake."
Range: North America, and northern South America. Breeds from Alaska and northern Canada to the southern border of the United States; winters from British Columbia, central United States to the West Indies, Colombia, and Guiana, irregularly to Massachusetts, New Hampshire, and Ontario.
This self-appointed guardian of our streams and lakes is clad in a suit of gendarme blue. He wears a sharp two-edged sword in his cap, and carries a rattle in his throat.
He is a perfect example of "Watchful Waiting," as he sits motionless on a bough overhanging a stream, with his fierce eyes fixed intently upon the waters beneath him. When an unwary fish swims by, this blue-coat plunges after it and spears it with deadly accuracy. If small, the fish is swallowed whole; if large, it is beaten to death against a tree, and devoured with difficulty. When fish are not obtainable, the kingfisher will eat frogs and crustaceans, and sometimes grasshoppers, crickets, and beetles. Fish, however, are his favorite food.[86]
The nest is as unusual and interesting as the bird himself. It consists of a tunnel excavated in a bank by the long knife-shaped bills of the kingfisher and his mate. A cavity of good size must be hollowed out to accommodate so large a bird and a family of from five to eight lusty youngsters. They are lively and quarrelsome; they set up a great clamor when Father or Mother arrives with an already-prepared fish-dinner. Dr. Francis H. Herrick, in his delightful book, "The Home Life of Wild Birds," tells of his observations of a kingfisher's nest and nesting habits as follows: "The nest had a 4 inch bore; 4 feet from the opening was a vaulted chamber 6 inches high and 10 inches across...."
A series of rattles announced the approach of the parent bird "who came at full tilt with a fish in her bill, making the earth resound." In response came "muffled rattles of five young kingfishers, who issued from their subterranean abode.... With a rattle in shrillest crescendo, she bolted right into the hole, delivered the fish, remained for half a minute, then came out backwards, turning in the air as she dropped from the entrance, and with a parting rattle was off to the river."
There were five babies in what Dr. Herrick called the "King Row." They were amusing to look at as they sat back on their legs; the bill of one nestling protruded above the shoulder of the bird in front of it. They never seized their food (fish) of their own accord. "It was necessary to open their bills and press the food well down into the distensible throats." Raw meat was rejected, but they throve on fish. "Kingfishers' throats are lined with inwardly projecting papillae so that when a fish is once taken in its throat, it is impossible for it to escape."[87]
The young kingfishers that Dr. Herrick observed became very tame. He is pictured with them on his hand, his shoulder, and on both knees.
While kingfishers do less good than most of our feathered benefactors, they do not destroy enough fish to be a detriment to the fishing interests of lakes and streams. They are true sportsmen, whose presence we should miss when we followed the rod and creel. We are forced to respect their prowess, and we may apostrophize them in the words of Izaac Walton: "Angling is an Art, and you know that Art better than others; and that this is the truth is demonstrated by the fruits of that pleasant labor which you enjoy."
THE FIELD SPARROW _Finch Family--Fringillidæ_
Length: About 5½ inches.
General Appearance: A small brown bird with a _reddish back_ and _bill_, and a _buff breast without spots_ or _streaks_.
Male and Female: Top of head reddish-brown; sides of head, nape of neck, and line over eye gray; bill reddish-brown; back reddish-brown, streaked with black and gray; rump brownish-gray; wings and tail brown, some wing-feathers edged with gray; _sides_ and _breast washed with buff_.
Song: A sweet trill, consisting of the syllable _dee_ repeated a number of times. It varies with different individuals, but is phrased somewhat as follows: _Dee'-dee'-dee', de'-de, de'-de, de'-de, de'-de, de'-de, de'-de._
Habitat: Old overgrown pastures containing clumps of bushes, preferred to cultivated fields. This sparrow is not accurately named, for it is not strictly a bird of the fields.
Range: Eastern North America. Breeds from southern Minnesota, Michigan, Quebec, and Maine to central Texas, Louisiana, and northern Florida; winters from Missouri, Illinois, southern Pennsylvania, and New Jersey to the Gulf Coast.
Some gorgeous but noisy birds, like blue jays, peacocks, and parrots, please only the eye; many quietly-dressed but sweet-voiced songsters are a delight to the ear. To the latter class belongs the Field Sparrow, a gentle little bird, so rarely seen as to recall to our minds the lines:
"Shall I call thee Bird Or but a wandering Voice? · · · · · · Even yet thou art to me No bird, but an invisible thing, A voice, a mystery."
It was several years after I had learned to love the sweet, tender song of the field sparrow that I had my first glimpse of the singer. He is a very real and delightful part of our April meadows, where he lives his serene life.
THE VESPER SPARROW _Finch Family--Fringillidæ_
Length: A little over 6 inches; slightly larger than the field sparrow.
Male and Female: Brownish-gray above, with faint streaks of black and buff; wings brownish, with _bright reddish-brown shoulders_, giving this sparrow the name of _Bay-Winged Bunting_. Under parts white, the sides and breast streaked with black and buff; tail brownish, with _outer tail-feathers mostly white, and conspicuous in flight_.
Song: A plaintive minor strain, usually consisting of two notes followed by a trill. The syllables sound like _Sweet'-heart, I love you-you-you-you-you_.
Habitat: Grassy pastures and plowed fields, usually in the open, away from farmhouses and out-buildings.
Range: Eastern North America. Breeds from central Canada south to eastern Nebraska, central Missouri, Kentucky, Virginia, and North Carolina, west to western Minnesota; winters from the southern part of its breeding range to the Gulf Coast, west to central Texas.
The Vesper Sparrow is very easy to identify because of its white tail-feathers. They show conspicuously as the bird flutters beside hedges that border fields, frequently keeping just ahead of the observer.
The bird is less attractive in appearance than the other familiar sparrows, but has to my mind the sweetest voice of all the sparrows that I know except the fox sparrow. Its song is pensive and tender, with a spiritual quality that gives it a high rank. The song sparrow's lay usually consists of three similar notes sung in a major key with a rising inflection, and followed by a cheerful trill; the vesper sparrow's song generally has two plaintive notes preceding a trill, sung in a minor key. It is particularly beautiful and uplifting when several vesper sparrows are singing at sunset.
THE VESPER SPARROW
When the meadows are brown or flushed with green And the lark's glad note rings clear,-- When the field sparrow's voice like a silver bell Chimes a melody sweet to hear,-- A small brown bird with bay-capped wings And feathers white in his tail, Flutters along by a roadside hedge And alights on a zigzag rail, And breathes forth a song entrancing, Of a beauty surpassed by few-- A wistful, plaintive, minor strain-- "O Sweetheart, I love you!"
When a mist of green o'erspreads the trees, And corals and rubies gay Are hung on the maple and red-bud boughs, And the brooks are babbling away,-- When the setting sun goes down in a glow Of the purest primrose gold, And the pearly east reflects a flush From the glories the west doth hold,-- This brown bird then, with a soul in his voice, Sings to his mate so true The tenderest song of the April choir-- "O Sweetheart, I love you!"
THE CHIPPING SPARROW _Finch Family--Fringillidæ_
Length: A little over 5 inches; the smallest of our common sparrows.
Male and Female: _Crown reddish-brown, bill black; a black line extending through the eye_; a _gray line above the eye_; back, wings, and tail brown; tail forked; rump gray; _breast pale gray without streaks or spots_. In the fall, the reddish crown becomes brown, streaked with black.
Call-note: _Chip-chip._
Song: A monotonous trill, _Chippy-chippy-chippy-chippy-chippy-chippy-chippy_, more like the metallic sound made by a locust than the song of a bird.
Habitat: A "doorstep" bird that loves to spend the spring and summer near man. It is found in gardens, orchards, and plowed fields.
Nest: An unusually dainty nest made of grass and fine root-fibers, lined with horsehair, which has given to the chipping sparrow the name of "hair-bird." The nest is built in trees or low bushes, sometimes very near the ground.
Eggs: Four or five pale-green eggs, mottled with dark markings.
Range: North America, from central Canada to Central America; commonest in the east.
This gentle, trustful sparrow is a general favorite. He is an unobtrusive little bird, seemingly contented to occupy his place in the world near to the haunts of man, unconsciously doing his important work without noisy demonstration. Like the brown creeper and the phoebe, he is of great economic value; like them, he is not particularly interesting, and he is without skill as a songster. But his monotonous trill is a pleasant part of the spring chorus, and his presence in our yards we should sorely miss.
Mr. Forbush speaks in high praise of this bird's usefulness. He claims that the chippy is "the most destructive of all birds to the injurious pea-louse, which caused a loss of three million dollars to the pea-crop of a single state in one year."[88] This sparrow eats the grubs that feed on beet-leaves, cabbages, and other vegetables; he devours cankerworms and currant worms, besides gypsy, brown-tail, and tent caterpillars, any one of which would entitle him to our protection. In the fall, with the decrease of life in the garden, he takes to the fields, where like other sparrows he feasts on seeds.
If it were more generally known how invaluable chipping sparrows are, people would guard them more carefully from marauding cats. I wish it might become as unlawful to let cats stalk abroad during the nesting season as it is to allow unmuzzled dogs to go about freely during dog-days. I know of a bird-lover near Painesville, Ohio, who never during nesting-time allowed her pet cat to stir outside of a good-sized enclosure without a weight attached to his collar. Some people have put bells on their cats' necks, but while that is efficacious in alarming parent-birds, it is of no value in preventing the slaughter of young birds that have just left the nest. Mr. Forbush has written an appeal, which I wish was more widely known and heeded. It is called "The Domestic Cat" and was published under the direction of the Massachusetts State Board of Agriculture.
Mr. Forbush wrote to such eminent experts and authorities on bird-life as Robert Ridgway, Dr. Frank M. Chapman, Dr. Witmer Stone, Dr. Henry W. Henshaw, Dr. William T. Hornaday, John Burroughs, William Dutcher, T. Gilbert Pearson, Dr. George W. Field, Dr. C. F. Hodge, Ernest Harold Baynes, Mrs. Mabel Osgood Wright, and others, for their opinions regarding the relative destructiveness of cats to the bird-life of the country. They were unanimous in their denunciation of cats as the "greatest destructive agency to our smaller song and insectivorous birds."
Mrs. Wright says: "If the people of the country insist upon keeping cats in the same number as at present, all the splendid work of Federal and State legislation, all the labors of game- and song-bird protective associations, all the loving care of individuals in watching and feeding, will not be able to save our birds in many localities."
Young chipping sparrows are spoiled bird-babies. They "tag" their gentle little parents about with unusual persistence, knowing that they will get what they demand. They frequently look as if they might not turn out to be excellent bird-citizens like their ancestors. When a noted ornithologist first saw Mr. Horsfall's original drawing of the accompanying family of chipping sparrows he remarked, "That baby looks a million years old and steeped in sin!" But the duties of parenthood sober the youngsters, and the following year, they become in turn pleasant, docile, lovable little "Bird Neighbors."
THE WHITE-THROATED SPARROW _Finch Family--Fringillidæ_
Length: About 6¾ inches.
General Appearance: One of the larger sparrows, with a _black and white striped crown_, a _white throat_, and a _yellow spot before the eye_.
Male and Female: Striped crown, with a _narrow white line_ in the _center_, a broad black stripe on each side of the white; a broad white stripe _over_ the _eye_ edged with a narrow black line; _a yellow spot in front of the eye_, and at the outer curve of the wing. Back brown, streaked with black; rump and tail grayish-brown; wings with two white bars; breast gray, becoming whitish on the belly; sides brownish.
Notes: A sharp _chip_ for the alarm-note; low, pleasant twitterings.
Song: A sweet whistle, usually pitched high. It consists of two or three notes that vary considerably. Sometimes the first note is an octave below the second; at other times it is a few tones higher than the second. I heard one recently that sang a perfect monotone as follows: _Dee, dee, de'-de-de, de'-de-de, de'-de-de_. The song has been interpreted in Massachusetts as
_Sam, Peabody, Peabody, Peabody_ / _Old_
and the bird is known as the "Peabody Bird."
Habitat: Hedgerows and thickets along roadsides, in parks, on estates, and in woods.
Range: Eastern and central North America. Breeds from north-central Canada to southern Montana, central Minnesota and Wisconsin, and mountains of northern Pennsylvania, New York, and Massachusetts; winters from Missouri, the Ohio Valley, southern Pennsylvania, Massachusetts, (casually in Maine), south to northeastern Mexico and Florida.
THE WHITE-CROWNED SPARROW _Finch Family--Fringillidæ_
Length: Nearly 7 inches; a little larger than the white-throated sparrow.
Male and Female: Crown _white_, bordered on each side by a broad black stripe that extends from bill in front of the eye; a broad white stripe borders each black stripe; a narrow line of black borders the white. _No yellow on head or wing_ like that of the white-throated sparrow. Cheeks, neck, throat, and under parts gray; belly white, sides buff; back, wings, and tail brown; back streaked; wings with two white bars.
Song: A sweet whistled strain.
Habitat: Thickets, woods, and fields.
Range: Breeds in Canada, the mountains of New Mexico, Colorado, Wyoming, and Montana, and thence to the Pacific Coast; winters in the southern half of the United States and in northern Mexico.
The White-crowned Sparrow is considered by some admirers to be the handsomest member of the sparrow tribe. It is not widely known in the East, and is sometimes confused with the white-throat. The gray throat of the white-crown and the absence of yellow on the wing and near the eye, distinguish it from the white-throat.
In Bulletin 513 of the Biological Survey occurs this description of the white-crown: "This beautiful sparrow is much more numerous in the western than in the eastern States, where indeed it is rather rare. In the East it is shy and retiring, but it is much bolder and more conspicuous in the far West and often frequents gardens and parks. Like most of its family it is a seed-eater by preference, and insects comprise very little more than 7 per cent. of its diet. Caterpillars are the largest item, with some beetles, a few ants and wasps, and some bugs, among which are black olive scales. The great bulk of food, however, consists of weed seeds, which amount to 74 per cent. of the whole. In California this bird is accused of eating the buds and blossoms of fruit trees, but buds or blossoms were found in only 30 out of 516 stomachs, and probably it is only under exceptional circumstances that it does any damage in this way. Evidently neither the farmer nor the fruit-grower has much to fear from the white-crowned sparrow. The little fruit it eats is mostly wild, and the grain eaten is waste."
THE PURPLE FINCH _Finch Family--Fringillidæ_
Length: About 6¼ inches; a little smaller than the English sparrow.
Adult Male: Body largely raspberry- or rose-red, streaked with brown. For two seasons the male is a brown sparrowlike bird, with a yellowish-olive chin and rump; the third season his body seems to have been washed with a beautiful _red, not purple_, the color richest on his head, breast, and rump. Head slightly crested; bill thick, with bristles at nostrils; cheeks and back brownish; under parts grayish-white; wings and tail brownish, edged with red; tail forked.
Female: Decidedly sparrowlike; body grayish-brown, heavily streaked, lighter underneath; patch of light gray extending from eye, another from beak; wings dark grayish-brown, with indistinct gray bands. She is not unlike the song sparrow, except for the absence of the three black spots on breast and throat.
Call-note: A sharp, metallic _chip_.
Song: A clear, sweet, joyous warble.
Habitat: Woods, orchards, and gardens.
Range: Eastern North America. Breeds in central and southern Canada, and northern United States, in North Dakota, central Minnesota, northern Illinois, and New Jersey, Maine, Massachusetts, the Pennsylvania mountains, and Long Island; winters from considerably north of the southern boundary of its breeding-range to the Gulf Coast, from Texas to Florida.
None of our smaller finches, except the goldfinch and indigo bunting are more beautiful in color than the PURPLE FINCH which wears a Tyrian purple, rather than the shade we commonly know.
Few members of the family sing more sweetly and joyously than this songster of the treetops. His delightful warble resembles somewhat the song of the rose-breasted grosbeak, and attracts attention wherever the bird is to be found. Several purple finches singing from neighboring elm trees at once, makes a May or June concert not easily excelled. Mr. Forbush says: "The song of the male is a sudden, joyous burst of melody, vigorous, but clear and pure, which no mere words can do justice. When, filled with ecstasy, he mounts in air and hangs with fluttering wings above the trees where sits the one who holds his affections, his efforts far transcend his ordinary tones, and a continuous melody flows forth, until, exhausted with his vocal efforts, he sinks to the level of his spouse in the treetop. This is a musical species, for some females sing, though not so well as the males."[89]
The bird has been accused of eating the buds of fruit and shade trees, especially elms, and while he is at times guilty, he is not condemned by those who know his food-habits best, but commended for his fondness for weed seeds, especially ragweed, and for destroying plant-lice, cankerworms, cutworms, and ground beetles.[89]
His cousin, the HOUSE FINCH, or LINNET of California, who is brighter in color, is more beloved by tourists and more hated by fruit-growers than almost any bird in the state. Professor Beal writes: "This bird, like the other members of its family, is by nature a seed-eater, and before the beginning of fruit-growing in California probably subsisted upon the seeds of weeds, with an occasional wild berry. Now, however, when orchards have extended throughout the length and breadth of the state and every month from May to December sees some ripening fruit, the linnets take their share. As their name is legion, the sum total of the fruit that they destroy is more than the fruit-raiser can well spare. As the bird has a stout beak, it has no difficulty in breaking the skin of the hardest fruit and feasting upon the pulp, thereby spoiling the fruit and giving weaker-billed birds a chance to sample and acquire a taste for what they might not otherwise have molested. Complaints against this bird have been many and loud.... Whatever the linnet's sins may be, grain-eating is not one of them. In view of the great complaint made against their fruit-eating habit, the small quantity found in the stomachs taken is somewhat of a surprise. When a bird takes a single peck from a cherry or an apricot, it spoils the whole fruit, and in this way may ruin half a dozen in taking a single meal. That the damage is often serious no one will deny. It is noticeable, however, that the earliest varieties are the ones most affected; also, that in large orchards the damage is not perceptible, while in small plantations the whole crop is frequently destroyed."[90]
In spite of this troublesome habit, the linnet is a most engaging little bird. Its sweet bubbling song, not unlike that of the purple finch, adds much to the charm of California.
THE TOWHEE OR CHEWINK CALLED ALSO GROUND ROBIN AND CHAREE _Finch Family--Fringillidæ_
Length: About 8½ inches; smaller than the robin and larger than the oriole.
General Appearance: A black bird with _reddish-brown sides_, _black breast_, and _white belly_; outer tail-feathers _tipped_ with _white_.
Male: Head, back, throat, and breast, a glossy black; wings black, outer feathers edged with white; tail black, outer edge of outer feather white; three other feathers partly white, decreasing in size toward middle of tail; belly white; _eyes dark red_.
Female: Brownish, where male is black. The young are streaked with black.
Call-note: A cheerful _cha-ree_, uttered with a rising inflection. The note is also interpreted as _tow hee'? chewink'? jaree'?_ An engaging trait of this bird is his almost invariable response to one imitating his note.
Song: Two notes, followed by a trill. The song may be translated into _chip-chur, pussy-pussy-willow_.
Habitat: Woodlands, where he is first found in April scratching among old leaves like fox sparrows, white-throats, and other members of his family.
Range: Eastern North America. Breeds from southern Canada and Maine to central Kansas and northern Georgia; winters from southeastern Nebraska, the Ohio and Potomac Valleys to central Texas, the Gulf Coast, and southern Florida.
The WHITE-EYED TOWHEE is found on the Atlantic Coast region from about Charleston, South Carolina, to southern Florida. He resembles his northern cousin except that his _eyes_ are _white_, and that his wings and tail have _less_ white on them. There are several species of towhee in our western states.
Before the trees are in leaf, there appears in our April woods a lively, trim, and attractive bird who makes himself known in no uncertain manner. So bustling and energetic is he, so cheerful and self-confident, without unpleasant aggressiveness, that he always attracts attention. The uninitiated frequently call him an oriole, whom he does resemble in having a glossy black head, throat, back, and tail, and white markings on his wings, with reddish-brown like that of the orchard oriole on his sides; but there the resemblance ceases, for the oriole has in addition a reddish-brown breast, belly, and rump. Then, too, the towhee arrives early, before larvæ have hatched; the oriole arrives in May, when swarms of insects have begun their work of fertilizing blossoms of fruit trees.
Professor Beal writes of the towhee as follows: "After snow has disappeared in early spring, an investigation of the rustling so often heard among the leaves near a fence or in a thicket will frequently disclose a towhee at work scratching for his dinner after the manner of a hen; and in these places and along the sunny border of woods, old leaves will be found overturned where the bird has been searching for hibernating beetles and larvæ. The good which the towhee does in this way can hardly be overestimated, since the death of a single insect at this time, before it has had an opportunity to deposit its egg, is equivalent to the destruction of a host later in the year."[91]
While attending to business, this ground robin seems most materialistic and worldly-minded; but when satisfied with his quest for food, "a change comes over the spirit of his dreams." He perches upon a low bough; in a sweet and joyous song he reveals his passionate devotion to his mate, and brings pleasure to listeners whose ears are attuned to the sounds of Nature.
DESCRIPTIONS AND BIOGRAPHIES OF OUR LATER SPRING BIRDS