28 



FOREIGN BIRDS FOR CAGE AND AVIARY. 



Hangnests (Ider-inoe). 

 BALTIMORE HANGNEST (Icterus Baltimore). 



Above black ; primaries with white edges to the 

 feathers ; greater coverts with broad white tips ; middle 

 tail-feathers orange at- base ; remaining feathers orange 

 with the exception of a sub-basal black band ; the black 

 of the throat extending to the middle of chest, other- 

 wise bright orange ; iipper mandible black ; lower man- 

 dible greyish-blue with dusky tip ; feet greyish-brown ; 

 iridee brown. Female much smaller, olivaceous-greyish 

 on the back; wing-feathers with pale or white edges; 

 front of crown and upper tail-coverts yellowish-oliva- 

 ceous ; throat and centre of abdomen huffish ; breast 

 dull orange ; sides, flanks, and tail greyish-olivaceous ; 

 under tail-coverts orange-ochreous ; bill more slender 

 than in male. Hab., " North America, from Atlantic 

 coast to high central plains (in summer), and through- 

 out Mexico and Central America to Panama- and Sierra 

 Nevada of Santa Maita " (P. L. Sclater) ; accidental in 

 Cuba (Ridgway). 



Captain Bendire says (" Life Histories of North Ameri- 

 can Bird's," Vol. IL, pp. 483-486): "Their favourite 

 haunts in our Eastern States are found in rather open 

 country, along roads bordered with shady trees, creek 

 bottoms, orchards, and the borders of small timbered 

 tracts." 



" A very peculiar note, a long-drawn-out, chattering 

 ' chae, chae, chae,' is apt to draw one's attention to it 

 on its first arrival, and this is more or les frequently 

 uttered throughout the season. This note is difficult 

 to reproduce exactly, and I find' its songs still more so. 

 One sounds like ' hash, hish, tweet, tweet ' ; another 

 something like ' whee-he-he, whee-he-he, oh whee-he-he- 

 woy-woy.' ' This last is much more softly uttered than 

 the first. Mr. T. Nuttall describes one of their songs 

 as ' tshippe-tshayia-too-too-tshippe-t&hippa-too-too,' and 

 there are others impossible to render. The young, after 

 leaving the nest, utter a note like 'he-he-hae,' and 

 another like ' heek-heek-he,' varied occasionally by a 

 low twittering. Shortly after their arrival they sing 

 almost incessantly when not eating ; but later in the 

 treason, when they have their always-hungry family to 

 provide for, they are more silent. Their flight is strong, 

 swift, and graceful, and they are far more at home on 

 the wing than on the ground', where they are seldom 

 seen, except when picking up some insect or in. search 

 of nesting material. 



"In the vicinity of Washington, District of Columbia, 

 nidification commences about the middle of May, and 

 full sets of eggs may be looked for the last week in 

 this month, while in Central New York, Connecticut, 

 Wisconsin, Southern Minnesota, etc., they usually nest 

 from eight to fourteen days later. 



" Ordinarily the nest of the Baltimore Oriole is pen- 

 sile, and is usually suspended 1 by the rim from the ex- 

 tremities of several slender branches, to which it is 

 attached. Others, besides being fastened by the rim. 

 which is always neat and smoothly finished, are attached 

 to some perpendicular fork or limb by one of the sides, 

 thus steadying the nest and preventing it from swinging 

 too much during heavy winds. In a truly pensile nest 

 some of the eggs are occasionally cracked by the violent 

 swaying of the slender twigs to which it is attached, 

 while if fastened at the side this occurs very rarely, 

 unless the entire limb is torn off. Both sexes assist in 

 nest-building. The materials used for the framework 

 consist principally of decayed fibres, such as those of 

 the Indian hemp (A-pocynum androsnemi folium) , the silk 

 of milkweed (Asclepias), nettles (Urtica), and, when 

 located near human habitations, of horsehair, bits of 

 twine, yarn, strips of grape-vine bark, etc. With such 



materials a strong purse or pouch shaped nest is woven 

 and firmly attached to one or more forked twigs by 

 the slightly contracted rim, and it is usually placed in 

 such a position that the entrance is well shaded by leafy 

 twigs above. All sorts of materials are used in lining 

 the bottom and sides of the nest cotton, wool, tow, 

 rags, cattle-hair, fur, fine strips of bark, tree-moss, fine- 

 grass, and plant-down. 



"The colour of some of the nests varies considerably ,. 

 according to the materials used; some look almost 

 white, others a pale straw colour, and the majority 

 smoke-grey. 



" The nests are usually suspended from long, slender, 

 drooping branches of elm, maple, birch, weeping willow, 

 button wood, sycamore, oak. aspen, poplar, Norway 

 spruce, apple, pear, and wild cherry trees ; but in some 

 localities they are built in the very top and centre of a 

 tree, where it is almost impossible to see them. They 

 are placed at various heights from the ground, from 8ft. 

 to 60ft. and more, and frequently in utterly inaccessible 

 positions. The Baltimore Oriole is tolerant and amiably 

 disposed toward its smaller neighbours, and such are 

 often allowed to nest in the same tree, and occasionally 

 within a few feet of ite own nest. 



" Incubation lasts about fourteen days, and I think 

 the- female attends to this duty almost exclusively. Both 

 sexes are extremely devoted to each other, as well as 

 to their eggs and young, defending these bravely against 

 all intruders. From 1 four to six eggs are laid to a set, 

 most frequently four, though sets of five are not un- 

 common, while sets of six are rather rare. One is 

 deposited daily, and only one brood is raised in a season. 

 The young are able to leave the nest when about two 

 weeks old, and may then be seen sitting on some ot 

 the branches close by and clamouring for food. They 

 are fed entirely on insects, etc. 



" The eggs of the Baltimore Oriole are usually elon- 

 gate in shape, more rarely ovate. The shell is fine 

 grained, moderately strong, and shows little gloes. 



" The ground colour is ordinarily pale greyish-white, 

 one of those subtle tints which is difficult^ to describe ; 

 in a few cases it is pale bluish-white, and less often the 

 ground colour is clouded over in places with a faint, pale 

 ferruginous suffusion. The egg is streaked, blotched, and 

 covered with irregularly shaped lines and tracings, 

 generally heaviest about the larger end of the egg, with 

 different shades of black and brown, and more sparingly 

 with lighter tints of smoke, lavender, and pearl grey. 

 In a few instances the markings form an irregular 

 wreath, and occasionally a set is found entirely un- 

 marked." 



Russ says that this species reached the Amsterdam 

 Zoological 'Gardens in 1839, the London Gardens in 1871, 

 and ii has always been common in the German Gardens. 

 In the bird market it is always readily bought, and its 

 price varies from 15 to 18 marks a specimen^-rarely less. 

 It certainly is not common in the English market, _ for 

 I have never seen it in any bird-shop, though I believe 

 I have seen it at one or two shows. 



BLACK-SIDED HANGNEST (Icterus aheilhi). 

 Above black; median and greater wing-coverts and 

 outer margins of flights white, but the concealed inner 

 webs of the greater coverts black; two middle tail- 

 feathers, inner webs of the next pair and tips of the 

 remainder, black ; otherwise the tail is bright yellow ; 

 a short eyebrow-stripe to above eye yellow ; under sur- 

 face brisrht yellow washed with orange; chin, middle 

 of throat, and flanks black ; bill greyish-black ; lower 

 mandible bluish, with dusky tip; feet blackish. Female 

 above grey, washed with olive-yellowish on head ; 

 feathers of back with darker centres; greater wing- 



