BALTIMORE ORIOLE 103 



tained melody through all the varied music of fields 

 and thickets. 



The nest is on the ground and is often domed to 

 look like a tussock of dried grass. It will only be 

 found by accident or diligent search, for the old birds 

 do not drop directly to it, but go down some distance 

 away and run along through the grass or clover. The 

 rather large eggs, 4 to 6, are white, thickly speckled 

 with cinnamon-brown. 



The winter plumage of the Meadowlark is much 

 duller than that of summer. Prof. Beal counts him 

 among our most useful birds, and says he is " entitled 

 to all possible protection." 



Baltimore Oriole: Icterus galbula. 



Length 7J/^ inches. 



Male, head, neck and upper back black. 



Under parts and lower back bright orange; wings and 

 tail mostly black. 



Female, upper parts brown and black; under parts dull 

 orange; white wing-bars. 



Resident (rather common) from May i to September; 

 winters in Central America. 



We are always delighted when a pair of Baltimore 

 Orioles elect to swing their hammock in one of our 

 tree-tops. Life seems uncom^monly well worth living 

 when set to such joyous music as they shower down 

 on us all day long in early stmimer; and then it is a 

 rare pleasure to see the golden beauty flashing in and 

 out of the foliage, and to watch the domestic ways of 

 his pretty brown mate with the white wing-bars, 

 whose identity was such a puzzle when we first began 

 to make bird acquaintances. One little dame was 

 friendly enough to let us overlook her weaving and 

 to graciously accept the bits o^ string we offered her. 



