202 



USEFUL BIRDS. 



County and among the western hills, but it is one of the 

 most common migrating Warblers throughout the State. 



The Myrtle Warbler has a variety of notes, but the one 

 usually uttered both spring and fall is a soft chirp or cJnijp, 

 which, at a little distance, exactly resembles the sound pro- 

 duced by a large drop of water as it strikes 

 wet ground or leaf mould. These 

 sounds are so similar that after 

 storms in the woods I have often 

 found it difficult to distinguish the 

 note of this Warbler from the splash of 

 the large drops that were still falling from 



Pig. 69 . — Myrtle War- 

 bier, nearly natural 

 size. 



the trees. The song is a rather weak 

 warble, very sweet, and often of long 

 duration. Sometimes portions of it are 

 given quite loudly, in a jingling tone, 

 resembling somewhat that of the Indigo Bird. It has quite 

 as many variations as the song of any Warbler that I now 

 recall. 



The Myrtle Bird remains through the winter in some por- 

 tions of the State where it can find food ; and, as it frequents 

 woodlands, orchards, and shade trees, as well as thickets, 

 it is probably the most useful of the Warblers that are not 

 common in summer. It remains in fall all alonof the coast 

 where bay berries grow, and until the supply of this fruit 

 becomes exhausted ; then the birds must either move to more 

 favored regions, or perish of cold and hunger, which latter 

 not infrequently happens in hard winters. They do not, 

 however, rely entirely on bayberries, l)ut eat a few other 

 berries and some seeds, and spend much time in searching 

 for hibernating insects and insects' 

 eggs. They are not confined to 

 the sea coast in winter, for they 

 can live on the berries of the red 

 cedar ; and I have found them 

 wintering in sheltered localities in 

 central Worcester County. Dr. Weed made a special study 

 of the autumn food of this species. He found that they ate 

 bayberries, caddis flies, various insect larvie, beetles, plant 



Fig. 70.— Woolly apple tree 

 aphis, eaten by Myrtle Warbler. 



