BIRD BIOGRAPHIES 



miss sadly; for he sits disconsolately on a bare twig and 

 calls her name in hoarse, wheezy tones. After she ap- 

 pears, it is pleasant to see their devotion, not only to each 

 other, but to the nesting site. How they journey apart 

 the great distance from South to North and find their own 

 especial bridge or barn year after year, is one of the great 

 mysteries. 



Their large, loosely-constructed nest is made of moss 

 and mud, lined with soft grass, hair, or feathers. It is 

 usually infested with bird-lice, as I discovered, to my 

 dismay. It is well not to allow phcebes to build where 

 the lice may become a nuisance. 



Like all the soberly-dressed flycatchers, phoebes seek 

 conspicuous perches such as posts or dead branches. 

 They have the family habit of ruffling up their head- 

 feathers into a sort of crest, and of jerking their tails fre- 

 quently, especially when uttering their note. They make 

 unexpected sallies after insects, which their unusually 

 keen eyes can see from dawn until dark. 



Phoebes are among our most useful birds, for they de- 

 stroy injurious beetles, weevils, flies that annoy cattle and 

 horses, house flies, ants, mosquitoes, wasps, spiders, grass- 

 hoppers, and numerous other harmful insects.^ Their 

 soft brown and gray plumage blends with dull March 

 meadows, with the silver sheen of the brooks they love, 

 and with silken pussy-willows and brown willow-boughs. 



THE BLACK PHCEBE 



The Black Phoebe is found from Texas west to the Pa- 

 cific coast. It catches flies persistently and well deserves 

 its family name. In appearance it resembles the slate- 



*■ Farmers' Bulletin 630, U. S. Dept. of Agriculture, Biological Survey. 



[112] 



