A Glimpse of the Birds of Berkeley, 



red tips upon the maple leaves, and 

 catch the first notes of autumn birds. 

 I hear the call of the red-breasted nut- 

 hatch, a fine, monotonous, far-away- 

 pipe, uttered In a succession of short 

 notes, and upon looking among the live- 

 oaks detect the little fellow hopping 

 about upon the bark. He is a mere 

 scrap of a bird, with a back of bluish 

 gray and a breast of a dull, rusty-red 

 hue, a cap of black and a white stripe 

 over the eye — a veritable gnome of the 

 bark upon which he lives the year 

 round. In its crannies he pries with 

 his strong, sharply-pointed beak for his 

 insect food, and in some hollow his 

 little mate lays her eggs and rears her 

 brood. With so many woodpecker 

 traits he nevertheless differs widely in 

 structure from that group, being more 

 closely allied to the wrens and tit- 

 mice. He is with us in greater or 

 less abundance throughout the winter, 

 and his very characteristic call may 

 be heard from time to time both 

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