244 OMNIVOROUS BIRDS. 



round the buds and branches, hanging from their extremi- 

 ties and proceeding often in reversed postures, head down- 

 wards, like so many tumblers, prying into every crevice of 

 the bark, and searching around the roots, and in every 

 possible retreat of their insect prey or its larvse. If the 

 object chance to fall, they industriously descend to the 

 ground and glean it up with the utmost economy. 



On seeing a cat, or other object of natural antipathy, 

 the Chicadee, like the peevish Jay, scolds in aloud, angry, 

 and hoarse note, like Hshe, ddigh cldigh ddigJi. Among 

 the other notes of this species, I have heard a call like 

 tshe-de-jay^ tshe-dc-jay, the two first syllables being a slen- 

 der chirp, with the jay strongly pronounced. The only 

 note of this bird which may be called a song, is one which* 

 is frequently heard at intervals in the depth of the forest, 

 at times of the day usually when all other birds are silent. 

 We then may sometimes hear in the midst of this solitude 

 two feeble, drawling, clearly whistled, and rather melan- 

 choly notes, like 'te-derry, and sometimes 'ye-perrit, and 

 occasionally, but much more rarely, in the same wiry, 

 whistling, solemn tone ^phehe. The young, in winter, also 

 sometimes drawl out these contemplative strains. In all 

 cases, the first syllable is very high and clear, the second 

 word drops low, and ends like a feeble plaint. This is 

 nearly all the quaint song ever attempted by the Chicadee ; 

 and is perhaps the two notes sounding like the whetting of 

 a saw, remarked of this bird in England by Mr. White, in 

 his Natural History of Selborne.* On fine days, about 

 the commencement of October, I have heard the Chicadee 

 sometimes, for half an hour at a time, attempt a lively, pet- 

 ulant warble, very different from his ordinary notes. On 

 these occasions he appears to flirt about, still hunting for 

 his prey, but almost in ai^ ecstasy of delight and vigor. 



* Vol. i. p. 177. (1st Ed.) 



