178 



CITIZEN BIRD 



very closely to see it. The Warblers mostly have 

 smooth slender beaks, but the Vireos have stouter 

 ones, with a little hooked point that enables them to 

 pick out and secure a great variety of insects. The 

 Chat is our only Warbler with a very stout beak, even 

 stouter than a Vireo's, but it has no hook at the end. 

 The Redstart's has a hooked point, but the rest of the 



beak is very broad 

 and flat, with a 

 row of stiff bristles 

 at each corner of 

 the mouth, to keep 

 insects from kick- 

 ing free when they 

 are caught." 



" You say his 

 eyes are red. l^ut 

 why is his name 

 ' Vireo' — does that 

 mean anything ? " 

 " ' Vireo ' comes 

 from the Latin 

 w o r d m e a n i n g 

 'green,' and because all of this family have greenish 

 backs one of their common names is 'Greenlet.' Be- 

 sides being very pretty to look at, this little red-eyed 

 bird is a great worker and does whatever he undertakes 

 in a most complete manner. When he starts his tree 

 trapping in the morning he does not flit carelessly from 

 one tree to another, but after selecting his feeding 

 ground, goes all over one brancli, never leaving it for 

 another until he has searched every crack and leaf. 



Kp:d-kyed Vireo. 



