Ill 



by a contortion in the same manner. It is not such a pronounced 

 effort, however, and is often only a sHght shudder and shrug of the 

 shoulders. They feed, like cowbirds, mostly on the ground, and 

 walk about most sedately in the grass like small crows. In tall 

 grass, however, they waddle too much to be graceful. When taking 

 flight they spread their long pointed tails in a very peculiar and 

 characteristic manner— not out in a horizontal plane, like most 

 birds, but up at the sides in the shape of a gardener's trowel, which 

 gives them an extraordinary appearance. 



* * ^ 



The redwings begin to come into the marshes soon after the 

 grackles, and are at that time in full feather and song. Their rich, 

 deliberate " cronk-ka Irrrrrrr," interlarded with the clear piping 

 whistles of some of the flock, make a concert of bird-notes very dear 

 to all who are familiar with it. In their scarlet and black velvet 

 dresses these birds are impossible to mistake, whether seen chasing 

 over the marshes, singing from an elm-top, or balancing wdth spread 



tail upon some tall reed stalk. 



* * * 



There is a bird-note so often and so justly mistaken for tliat of 

 the phoebe that the error certainly merits correction. The spring- 

 song of the chick-a-dee (which may be heard on almost any warm 

 day all winter, and is very easy to call forth by even a poorly 



whistled imitation) is a clear, pure " eee --" or " " which 



really says " Phoebe" much more plainlj' than the true phoebe note, 



this latter being much lower in tone, and only 



to be heard after March is w^ell on, and almost 



always in the vicinity of running streams and 



brooklets ; while the gay little chick-a-dee 



whistles at any time or place that suits his 



versatile fancy. 



7» 7v w 



The mellow flute notes of the meadow lark 

 (Fig. 73) float to us from the middle of some 

 large open fleld, and are among the most beau- 

 tiful bits of bird music we ever hear. They are not to be repre- 

 sented by notes, and can only be most inadequately described. There 



503 



