Black and White Creeping Warbler 57 



cowbird's ^gg, although they may seal up their 

 own speckled treasures with it. Suppose the 

 wicked cowbird comes back and lays still an- 

 other egg in the two-storied nest : what then ? 

 The Httle Spartan yellow bird has been known 

 to weave still another layer of covering rather 

 than hatch out an unwelcome, greedy inter- 

 loper to crowd and starve her own precious 

 babies. Two and even three-storied nests are 

 to be found by bright-eyed boys and girls. 



BLACK AND WHITE CREEPING 

 WARBLER 



You may possibly mistake this little warbler 

 for a downy woodpecker when first you see him 

 creeping rapidly over the bark of trees, or hang- 

 ing from the under side of the branches. But 

 when he flits restlessly from twig to twig and 

 from tree to tree without taking time to exam- 

 ine spots thoroughly ; especially when he calls 

 a few thin wiry notes — zee-zee-zee-zee — you may 

 know he is no woodpecker, but a warbler. 

 Woodpeckers have thick set, high shouldered 

 bodies which they flatten against the tree trunks ; 

 the males wear red in their caps, and all have 

 larger, stouter bills than the warbler's. Moreover, 

 no woodpecker is so small as this streaked and 

 speckled little creature who is usually txx) intent 



