THE BLACKBIRD FAMILY 95 
over the country. He is not so large as a robin, 
and is black all over, excepting one place on the 
wings. On these are bright stripes of red and 
orange, which seem to be on the shoulders when 
the wings are closed. They make the bird very 
gay, when he spreads them out in flying. 
The red-wing’s mate is a modest-looking bird 
in stripes of brown and black. She is a plodding 
sort of a creature, too. She walks about on the 
ground, looking for grubs or insects so busily 
that she hardly seems to see anything else. 
The nest is usually ina marsh. At any rate, 
it must be near the water, for red-wings are as 
fond of the water as any old sailor. It is hung 
between reeds, or in the branches of a low bush. 
It is a comfortable, bag-like affair, deep enough 
and big enough to hold the restless blackbird 
babies. 
While the mother red-wing is sitting, her mate 
stays near her and sings a great deal. His song 
is a loud, sweet “ hwa-ker-ee,” which may be 
heard a long way off. When nestlings are out, 
he is one of the most busy and fussy of birds. 
He helps in the feeding, and seems to be a good 
and careful father. But when the young ones 
are grown up and able to feed themselves, a curi- 
ous thing happens. All the gay red-wings in a 
neighborhood come together in a flock again. 
