184 CITIZEN BIRD 



A great strong beak, hooked like a Hawk's. 

 Only a Winter Visitor in the United States — a Summer Citizen 

 of the far North. 



Belongs both to the Ground Gleaners and the Wise Watchers. 



THE CEDAR WAXWING 

 (The Polite Bird) 



" This is the bird, Nat, that you saw in the cedar 

 tree, where you said it was ' sitting about doing noth- 

 ing,' " continued the Doctor. 



" The reason of this seeming idleness is, that he be- 

 longs to the small group of birds who do not nest until 

 June, and hereabouts rarely begin their homes before 

 the middle of that month. Waxwings are very gentle, 

 affectionate birds ; before the nesting season, and after 

 their families are able to take care of themselves, they 

 wander about in flocks of sometimes thirty or forty, 

 keeping close together, both when they fly and when 

 they take their seats. They spend most of the time in 

 the trees where they feed, whispering to one another 

 in their quiet way, and you will very seldom see them 

 on the ground. 



" Your best chance to watch them is either before 

 the leaves are out or after they have fallen, when a 

 flock will sometimes sit for half an hour in a bare tree, 

 exchanging civilities, stroking each other's feathers, 

 and passing food around. This trait has given them 

 the reputation of being the most polite birds in all 

 Birdland. One will find a dainty morsel and offer it 

 to his next neighbor, who passes it on — hunt-the- 

 slipper fashion — until some one makes up his mind 



