122 Twelve Months With 



Unlike the indigo bird, the tanager, during the 

 nesting season in July, prefers the depths of the 

 green woods. His mate is singularly unlike him 

 in appearance, the upper parts of her plumage 

 being light olive green, wings and tail dark gray, 

 and under parts greenish yellow. Florence A. 

 Merriam speaks of the male scarlet tanager as a 

 "bird of glowing coal, whose brilliancy passes 

 wonder." His song is a loud, cheery, rhythmical 

 carol, suggesting the song of the robin. 



No day should be counted lost in which one has 

 seen a scarlet tanager! The oak and the sumac 

 refuse to deck themselves in their autumn colors 

 until the tanager has gone, lest they should suffer 

 by comparison! 



One of the most common midsummer songs 

 about my home is that of the rose-breasted gros- 

 beak. This bird begins nesting the latter part of 

 May or early June, but continues to sing through 

 July. The song is generally compared to that of 

 the robin. If the robin sang its song with the 

 oriole's vocal equipment, I think the result would 

 be pretty close to the song of the rosebreast. In 

 short, the similarity to the robin's song is great 

 as to form, but the rosebreast's notes are much 

 more liquid and warbler-like, with the whistling, 

 fluting quality of the oriole. It is an exquisitely 

 pure carol and a perfect conductor of the bird's 

 happiness to one who is fortunate enough to hear 

 it. I once heard a robin answering the rosebreast's 

 call, evidently mistaking it for the song of its mate. 



