84 OUR WINTER BIRDS 



is true, has the little red sealing-wax-like tips on the 

 inner wing-feathers (and rarely tail), which give 

 the bird its last name. Probably those which lack 

 this peculiar and distinctive mark are not wholly 

 adult It is rarely worn by nestling birds, which 

 further differ from their parents in being lighter col- 

 ored and strongly streaked below. 



The Waxwing does not restrict his diet to the 

 berry of the tree after which he is named. He seems 

 fond of all wild fruits and was not slow to add culti- 

 vated ones to his bill-of-fare. He is also fond of 

 various kinds of insects, particularly the canker- 

 worm so destructive to our elm trees, and no one 

 who knows of his valiant service as a protector of 

 our shade trees will deny his well-earned right to a 

 share of our cherries and strawberries. 



Toward midsummer he becomes one of th:^ most 

 expert and graceful of flycatchers and from a well- 

 chosen perch swings out into the air or darts upward 

 after passing insects. 



Notwithstanding his gentle, quiet ways, the Wax- 

 wing is an adventurous and erratic traveler. He 

 follows no regular routes and time-tables such as 

 guide the journeys of the Warblers and most mi- 

 grants, but apparently wanders wherever the mood 

 prompts him to go. Wholly absent some winters, 



