ORIOLES 351 



to the loud, hurried, but very agreeable sounding song of the 

 male. They eat all kinds of caterpillars, lice, flies, beetles, 

 chafers and similar insects, mulberries, strawberries, cherries 

 and other small fruits in season, but the insect diet predomi- 

 nates and such fruit as is taken is more than paid for. In 

 Texas mesquite trees seemed to be the favorite nesting site 

 selected but in the more northern states nests are placed in vari- 

 ous orchard, roadside and other trees, usually near civilization 

 or along some stream. 



Subgenus YPHANTES Vieillot. 



•^507. Icterus galbida (\Ar\n.^. Baltimore Oriole; Golden 

 Robin; Fire Bird; Hang Bird; Hang Nest; Pea Bird. 



Plumage of adult male : whole of head, throat, upper back and neck 

 black ; wings black with white edgings to quills and greater coverts ; tail 

 feathers orange, the outer ones with a black band near middle and the inner 

 ones black for outer half ; lower back, lesser wing coverts, breast and belly 

 reddish orange. Plumage of adult female : head and back with black mot- 

 tlings ; wings fuscous, the greater and median coverts white tipped ; upper 

 parts grayish orange, brighter on rump and tail ; the middle tail feathers 

 with blackish ; below duller orange than the male, throat with a little black. 

 Immature plumage : similar to female but more olive brown above; black on 

 throat lacking. Wing 3.60; culmenO.72; tarsus 0.91. 



Geog. Dist. — Eastern North America from Nova Scotia and New Bruns- 

 wick to the Gulf States, eastern Montana, Colorado and Texas ; wintering in 

 Mexico and Central America; accidental in Cuba and Shetland. 



County Records. — Androscoggin; common summer resident, (Johnson). 

 Cumberland; common summer resident, (Mead J. Franklin; common sum- 

 mer resident, (Swain). Hancock; summer resident, (Murch). Kennebec; 

 quite common summer resident, (Gardiner Branch;. Knox; summer, (Rack- 

 lifif). Oxford; breeds commonly, (Nash). Penobscot; seemingly only in 

 the southern portion of the county, there common, (Knight). Piscataquis; 

 not common, breeds, (Homer). Sagadahoc ; rare, three specimens, (Spinney) ; 

 common at Bath, (Knight). Somerset; common summer resident, (Morrell); 

 not in northern county, (Knight). Waldo; common summer resident, 

 (Knight). Washington; straggler, (Boardman). York ; quite common sum- 

 mer resident, (Adams). 



Near Bangor this species usually arrives from May ninth to 

 May twelfth, and while nearly all are gone in late August, an 



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