OUR SWEETEST SONGSTERS. 67 



time ago ; he seldom flies higher than an ordi- 

 nary treetop, generally not so high, when he 

 sings. Yet one spring I heard several bobo- 

 links singing at about three times that height, 

 but they were flying straight across the sky and 

 not mounting upward. It seemed as if they 

 had just come from some other part of the 

 country, and were announcing their arrival with 

 a burst of melody. 



When the song sparrow becomes especially 

 joyous he, too, will spring out from a branch or 

 even up from the ground, and trill at the top 

 of his voice. The meadow lark often falls into 

 a lyrical transport and sings on the wing, though 

 at such times he does not pipe his ordinary 

 '' Cheer ! cheer ! " but i^ours forth a wild med- 

 ley that makes the welkin ring. 



Here is a curious fact about these aerial 

 vocalists: they are all birds that nest on the 

 ground or in low bushes, and that spend a large 

 part of their time there, and they almost always 

 spring from the ground or a low perch into the 

 air. Although there may be exceptions, I do 

 not recall a single treetop lilter that indulges 

 in such vocal gambols. 



