A SUMMER CHORUS 121 



little fault to find with them, for their presence 

 more than repays the small loss of fruit. Be- 

 sides, they do much good by destroying count- 

 less beetles, caterpillars, moths, etc., which would 

 work much injury to orchard and vineyard. 



The male Baltimore Oriole is a strikingly 

 handsome bird. The entire head, throat, upper 

 back and neck are black; the black wings are 

 edged with white and the tail feathers are orange, 

 the outer ones with a black band near the mid- 

 dle. The lower back, lesser wing coverts, breast 

 and belly are bright orange. With the female 

 the black is washed with olive-green and the 

 orange is much duller. They retain their bright 

 colors after moulting, rather an unusual condi- 

 tion. There is a second period of song in August 

 and early September. These birds range in sum- 

 mer over eastern North America, nesting from 

 the Gulf of Mexico to Canada, and wintering 

 in Central America. This Oriole is about eight 

 inches long. 



Red-winged Blackbird. One of the early 

 comers, w^hose presence gladdens the eye, is the 

 Red-winged Blackbird, as he is misnamed, for 

 his wings and entire body are coal black, except 

 for the shoulders which are a brilliant red edged 

 with yellow, a most striking contrast to his 

 otherwise somber suit. The sexes, it is said, are 

 segregated durng their sojourn in the south, 

 and in consequence the flocks of males precede 

 by a few days the females. When they first 

 arrive in early March, for a time they roam 

 about in a careless way, but with the mating 

 eeasoa the flocks divide and they seek nesting 



