GENERAL OBSERVATIONS AND SKETCHES AFIELD 309 



the berries off to their young, who Uved in a box provided 

 for them. 



In the last of June and early July, the little red squirrels 

 made the mulberry tree their favorite resort. If the red 

 squirrels are not found in their highways, frolicking and playing 

 hide-and-seek over the outstretching limbs of the beeches, or 

 bounding over the adjacent oak boughs, one will very likely 

 find his majesty saddling a crotch in the mulberry tree, with 

 a berry in his forepaws, contentedly enjoying his usual meal of 

 mulberries. He paid no attention to me when I quietly stole 

 up near the tree for better observation, having become accus- 

 tomed to my presence, but let a mischievous dog or a stranger 

 come near and instantly his curiosity is aroused. His black 

 eyes are ever on the alert to detect an enemy. At once his 

 little energetic body becomes aggressive, expressing his dislike 

 by scolding, barking, and whistling, and often emphasizing 

 his emotions by vibrating his tail and body. A moment later 

 and he has disappeared into the thick tangle of the branches 

 of a cedar, where he finally subsides. 



While the cherries are ripe, the almost undivided attention 

 of the birds is taken up with them. But a little later the fruit 

 of the mulberry tree begins to ripen. From this period on, 

 for a week or more, the succession of maturing berries is most 

 prolific, and, as above suggested, offers a tempting diet to the 

 winged and bushy-tailed inhabitants. By planting a mulberry 

 tree near cherry trees which ripen at the same time, the usual 

 attacks on the cherries by birds will be very much reduced, as 

 most birds prefer the mulberries. 



Besides the mulberry tree, strawberries are considered lus- 

 cious morsels by the Baltimore oriole. There is no sight more 

 beautiful to the eyes than the brilliant orange-colored male 

 oriole with a crimson strawberry in his mouth, passing in mid- 

 air, back and forth from the berry patch to his exquisite hanging 

 nest. The bird lover may well sacrifice some of these berries 

 for the privilege of viewing this beautiful sight. 



Certain preferred localities are often chosen by birds because 

 of their close proximity to good feeding grounds. I met with 

 an incident in the summer of 1904 that shows the preference 

 for certain surroundings chosen by the field sparrow in which 



