112 GREAT CRESTED FLYCATCHER 



circles out, it is doubtless this Flycatcher getting his 

 dinner. If near enough you would hear a sharp click 

 of the bill at every foray, for he seldom misses his 

 mark. 



Kingbirds are abundant, which is fortunate for the 

 country, as nearly nine-tenths of their food is in- 

 jurious insects. They are especially partial to potato- 

 bugs, grasshoppers, and rose-chafers. 



The nest is usually in large trees, from ten to thirty 

 feet up, and is placed well out on a branch. It is cup- 

 shaped, built of roots and grasses and lined with finer 

 stufif. Three eggs are generally laid, sometimes four, 

 much blotched and speckled with brown. Dr. Rich- 

 monds says " Kingbirds prefer solitary trees in which 

 to build their nests, probably because they can keep 

 closer watch on their preserves." These birds are 

 devoted to their nest and are so vigilant that it is safe 

 to say it is never molested unawares. The young 

 are the most petted and pampered of bird children, 

 and are kept in the tree-tops and fed until they are as 

 large as their parents and can be distinguished from 

 them only by the shorter tail. 



The fear which Crows, have of the Kings was shown 

 very amusingly by a tame Crow we once had. When- 

 ever Kingbirds came about the lawn the Crow would 

 scurry under the porch or fiv to us for protection. 



Great Crested Flycatcher: Myiarchus crinitus. 



Length 9 inches. 



Upper parts olive-green. A low pointed crest. 

 Throat and breast pearl-gray, belly yellow. 

 Resident (common) from April 25 to September; winters 

 in southern Florida and Central America. 



The Crested Flycatcher is partial to wooded, rocky 

 hillsides where arbutus and laurel grow, but he may 



