SCARLET TANAGER. 467 



together, but soon return to their favorite station in the 

 spreading boughs of the shady oak or hickory. This 

 song has some resemblance to that of the Red-eyed Vi- 

 reo in its compass and strain, though much superior, the 

 ^wait wait being whistled very sweetly in several tones, 

 and with emphasis, so that, upon the whole, our Pyrari' 

 ga may be considered as duly entitled to various excel- 

 lence, being harmless to the farmer, brilliant in plumage, 

 and harmonious in voice. 



The nest of this beautiful bird is built about the mid- 

 dle of May, on the horizontal branch of a shady forest 

 tree, commonly an oak, though sometimes in a tree in 

 the orchard. It is but slightly put together, and usually 

 composed of broken rigid stalks of dry weeds, or slender 

 fir twigs, loosely interlaced together, and partly tied with 

 narrow strips of Indian hemp {Apocynum), some slender 

 grass leaves, and pea-vine runners (Amp hi car pa), or oth- 

 er frail materials ; the interior is sometimes lined with the 

 slender, wiry, brown stalks of the Canadian cistus [Heli' 

 anthemiwi) ; or with slender pine leaves ; and the whole 

 of the substances is so thinly platted, as readily to ad- 

 mit the light through their interstices, thus forming a 

 very clean and airy bed for the brood, well suited for the 

 mildness and warmth of the season in which they are 

 produced. The eggs, 3 or 4, are of a dull blue, spotted 

 with two or three shades of brown or purple most numer- 

 ous towards the larger end. They only sojourn long 

 enough to rear their single brood, which are here fledged 

 early in July, leaving us already for the South about the 

 middle or close of August, or as soon as the young are 

 well able to endure the fatigue of an extensive migration 

 in company with their parents. The female shows great 

 solicitude for the safety of her only brood, and on an ap- 

 proach to the nest appears to be in great distress and 



