BAY-WINGED COW-BIRD 113 
increased since his time, as it is now quite common 
in the Plata district. 
The Bay-wings usually go in small flocks, num- 
bering from ten to thirty individuals, and are not 
migratory, but in winter they travel about a great 
deal from place to place without extending their 
journeys more than a few miles in any direction. 
They are fond of coming about houses, and are 
frequently seen pecking at the fresh meat hanging 
out of doors; and, like other birds of the same 
tribe, feed chiefly on the ground. They spend a 
great portion of their time on trees, are familiar with 
man and inactive, and in their motions singularly 
slow and deliberate. Their language is varied. 
Curiosity or alarm is expressed by trilling notes, 
and before quitting a tree all the birds of a flock 
ceremoniously invite each other to fly, with long 
clear notes, powerful enough to be heard a quarter 
of a mile away. 
They also sing a great deal in all seasons, the song 
being composed of soft, clear, rather sweet notes, 
variously modulated, uttered in a leisurely manner, 
and seeming to express a composed frame of mind, 
all the birds in a flock singing in concert. During 
the cold season the flock always finds some sheltered 
sunny spot on the north side of a wood-pile or hedge, 
where they spend several hours every day, sitting 
still and singing in their usual quiet, soft style. 
Their extreme sociability affects their breeding 
habits, for sometimes the flock does not break up in 
spring, and several females lay in one nest together ; 
H I 
