SONGLESS BIRDS OF ORCHARD AND WOODLAND. 233 



PhcEbe. Phoebe Bird. Pewee. Bridge Pewee. 



Sayornis plujebe. 



Length. — About seven inches. 



Adult Male. — Above, dull olive-brown ; head dark, almost blackish ; sides, and 



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

 Nest. — Built of mud, mossed over ; grass or feather Imed ; placed on some beam 



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

 Eggs. — White. 

 Season. — April to October. 



The common Phoebe is known throughout the State. It 

 is as familiar and homelike as the Swallows, and deserves 

 all the regard accorded it as a friend to man. This bird feeds 

 almost entirely upon insects ; hence its pref- 

 erence for the vicinit}^ of water and its ap- 

 parent fondness for streams, for in such 

 locations its source of food supply is 

 augmented by the many insects that, 

 like mosquitoes, pass the earlier part 

 of their lives in water, and emerge 

 later to fly about within range of 

 the Phcebe's quick and accurate 

 eye. Perched on 

 a dead twig, a 

 mullein stalk, a 

 post, or some 



similar vantage ^ 



point, Phoebe 

 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 immolates the victim. 



This Flycatcher, unlike the Wood Pewee, hawks about 

 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 chip, 

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

 monly heard may be given j^^^^e'be, pJiee'hrizzy, — the first 



Fig. 93. — Phoebe, one-half natural size. 



