522 GRANIVOROUS BIRDS. 



to gardens, which, as well as corn-fields, afford them a 

 ready means of subsistence ; they are also fond of the seeds 

 of most of the orchard fruits, and are said occasionally to 

 prey upon bees. 



The lay of the Cardinal is a loud, mellow, and pleas- 

 ingly varied whistle, delivered with ease and energy for 

 a considerable time together. To give it full effect, he 

 chooses the summit of some lofty branch, and elevating 

 his melodious voice in powerful as well as soothing and 

 touching tones, he listens, delighted, as it were, with the 

 powers of his own music, at intervals answered and en- 

 couraged by the tender responses of his faithful mate. 

 It is thus the gilded hours of his existence pass away in 

 primeval delight, until care and necessity break in upon 

 his contemplative reveries, and urge him again to pursue 

 the sober walks of active life. 



The song of the Red Bird, like that of so many others, 

 though possessed of great originality, often consists in part, 

 of favorite borrowed and slightly altered phrases. It 

 would be a difficult and fruitless task to enumerate all 

 the native notes delivered by this interesting songster ; 

 a few may be perhaps excused by those who wish, in 

 their rural walks, to be made, in any way, acquainted 

 with the language of the feathered vocalists that surround 

 them. All the tones of the Cardinal are whistled much in 

 the manner of the human voice. Late in February, 

 while travelling in Alabama, I heard one crying woolit, 

 woUt wolit ivoUt, then in a quicker tone butsh butsh butsJi 

 butsh, and Hsliooiccuj tshooway tshoowaij. At another time 

 the song was ^7i;it a ^ivit, 'teu; then tslicvi tsheve 'teu,'tchoit 

 ^whoit ^whoit 'teu (the 'whoit an exact human whistle, and 

 the teil tenderly emphatic.) Another bird called, teo ieo 

 teOjtshaoi,tshooe tshooeishooe, then teo teo teo ieo alone, or 

 ^woit ^woit 'ivoit ^woitf with the last word delivered slower, 



