WHITE-WINGED CROSSBILL. 591 



these uncertain winter visiters were seen in a Red Cedar 

 grove near to Mount Auburn in this vicinity. The present 

 season, (1833,) accompanied by the White-Winged species, 

 a flock of the same birds made their appearance, as early 

 as the 11th of November, in some tall Pine trees, in the 

 same place, they visited the last year in the depth of winter. 

 They are very busy and unsuspicious, have very much the 

 manners of Parrots in their feeding. At some distance be- 

 neath the trees where they are engaged, we can hear them 

 forcing open the scales of the rigid pine cones with a con- 

 siderable crackling, and the wings of the seeds fly about in 

 all directions. Sometimes the litde Red Polls also attend to 

 snatch a seed or two as they are spread to the winds. They 

 fly somewhat like the Yellow-Birds, by repeated jerks and 

 sinkings and risings in their course, but proceed more swift 

 and direct to their destination ; they also utter a rather loud 

 and almost barking or fifing chirp, particularly the females, 

 like Hsh Hship, 'tsh ^tsMp. Their enemies seem also to fol- 

 low them into this distant and unusual retreat. One even- 

 ing, as they were uttering their quailing chirp, and about to 

 roost in the Pines, we heard an unusual cry, and found that 

 the alarm was justly occasioned by the insidious and daring 

 attack of a bold Butcher-Bird (Lanius horealis), who had 

 taken advantage of their bewildered confusion at the mo- 

 ment of retiring to repose. Besides their call and ordinary 

 plaints, we hear, as I have thought, now and then, in the 

 warmer part of the day a rather agreeable, but somewhat 

 monotonous song. We found these birds, as well as the 

 Red Polls, very fat and plump ; and they devour a great 

 quantity of pine seeds, with which the aesophagus is perpet- 

 ually gorged as full as in the gluttonous and tuneless Cedar- 

 Birds (Bombycilla.) 



