SONGLL\SS BIIWS OF OlKHIAliD AND WOOULAND. 233 



PhcEbe. Phcebe Bird. Pewee. Bridge Pewee. 



S((.)/oniis phd'bt'. 



Length. — About seven inches. 



Adult l/a?e. —Above, dull olive-brown; head dark, ahnost blackish ; sides, and 



often the breast, shaded with same; tail notched; bill entirely dark. 

 ^Ye.s^ — Built of mud, mossed over; grass or feather lined; ])laced on some beam 



of building or bridge, imder the edge of a high bank or rock, or in a cave. 

 Egf/s. — "White. 

 Season. — A^iril to October. 



The coininon Phoebe is known throughout the State. It 

 is as familiar and homelilve as the Swallows, and deserves 

 all the regard accorded it as a friend to man. This l)ird feeds 

 almost entirely upon insects ; hence it>s pref- 

 erence for the vicinity of water and \\^ a})- 

 parent fondness for streams, for in such 

 locations its source of food supply i^ WfU^^^i^^ 

 augmented by the many insects that, 

 like mos(juitoes, pass the earlier part 

 of their lives in water, and emerge 

 later to fly about within range of 

 the Phoebe's quick and accurate 

 eye. Perched on 

 a dead twig, a 

 mullein stalk, a 

 post, or some 

 similar vantage 

 p o i n t , P h oe b e 

 scans the sur- 

 rounding space with eager eye, marking each insect that 

 comes within her field of vision ; and when her eye rests on 

 one she covets, be it beetle, moth, or fly, she quickly leaves 

 her perch and innnolates the victim. 



This Flycatcher, unlike the Wood Pewee, hawks a])Out 

 habitually near the ground, though it often takes a higher 

 perch and flight. While sitting it often jets the tail, throw- 

 ing it up even higher than it is represented in the cut ; but 

 usually the tail is held low. The Phoebe utters a loud cliij^, 

 and it has a variety of softer tones ; ]iut the note most com- 

 nujiily heard maybe given p^'ce'be, jj/zee'ir/^',?;?/, — the first 



Fig. 93. — I'liwbe, one-half natural size. 



