The Birds' Calendar 



all the other birds, I heard a very musical twit- 

 ter from a nuthatch, quite contrary to his 

 custom, and apparently prompted by the desire 

 to be in fashion. Among all the woodland 

 choir the phcebe alone, for good and sufficient 

 reason, as yet remains as dumb as an oyster. 



A few days after the return of the "gold- 

 crest ' ' I discovered a species of kinglet that 

 I had never seen before the ruby-crowned, 

 somewhat more rare, and, as it seemed to me, 

 though perhaps from the circumstance of nov- 

 elty, more beautiful than even the " gold-crest." 

 The two kinglets are of the same size (about 

 four inches long), and the smallest of all our 

 birds except the humming-bird. With the 

 same general coloring as the other, the ruby- 

 crowned has a suffusion of yellow, and, instead 

 of the black and yellow markings on the head, 

 the male has a deep red flame on the crown. 

 But the specification of its coloring does not 

 touch the core of its daintiness as shown in 

 figure and motion. The habits of the two are 

 the same, and under the circumstance of its 

 not being very much rarer than the " gold- 

 crest " it is a singular fact that perhaps in not 

 more than three or four instances has its nest 

 ever been discovered. 



