176 NEWS FHOM THE BIRDS. 



Ills limber tono-ue four different soiio:s and two 

 and even three alarm-calls of the wren, getting 

 in all the details with the utmost precision. It 

 was evident that he had studied these wren 

 lays, and had practiced them until he had at- 

 tained jDerfection. Indeed, an expert orni- 

 thologist would have been completely led 

 astray by the imitation. More than once I 

 was sure that I ^v^as listening to a wren's 

 rolling notes, and was only disabused of the 

 error by the succeeding strains, which pro- 

 claimed the provoking mimic. The mocker's 

 imitation of the vaiious wren songs and calls 

 in quick succession is all the more curious be- 

 cause the wren himself seldom delivers his 

 music in that way, his habit being to deliver 

 one song for awhile, and then take up another. 

 Our jolly mocker had quite an extensive 

 repertoire. It was pleasing to hear him repeat 

 the phoebe's whistle several times, and then close 

 with that of the wood pewee, an order that he 

 seldom failed to observe, and never reversed. 

 Perhaps he mistook both songs for the produc- 

 tion of one bird. He took special delight in 

 delivering the loud, martial call of the tufted 

 titmouse^ and also that bird's saucy chick-a-da-da, 

 giving all the variations. One is almost tempted 

 to say that he could whistle the cardinal gross- 



