158 Twelve Months With 



on the back, and the ruby-crown has two whitish 

 wing bars, with a partly concealed bright red crest 

 in the midde of the crown. This red crest is 

 scarcely discernible, except when the little bird 

 tips his head toward the observer and the color is 

 caught in the rays of the sun, when it flashes out 

 with great brilliance and beauty. This crown 

 patch is absent with the female and immature 

 birds. In the center of the crown of the golden- 

 crown is a bright reddish orange patch bordered 

 by yellow and black, which in the male is quite 

 conspicuous. These delightful little birds are very 

 friendly and unafraid, as they hop around the tree 

 trunks and lower branches feeding upon micro- 

 scopic insects. These tiny balls of feathers are 

 occasionally seen in this latitude throughout the 

 winter, which is living evidence that, given an 

 abundance of food, temperature is a secondary fac- 

 tor in a bird's existence. The golden-crown may 

 often be heard singing during the spring migra- 

 tion. 



Among the nuthatches, the white-breasted and 

 the red-breasted are both common migrants, and 

 according to my own observations the latter is the 

 more abundant. The former is also a not uncom- 

 mon summer resident, in the latitude of Northern 

 Illinois or Southern Michigan. Few birds are eas- 

 ier to identify than the nuthatches. Running up 

 and down the tree trunks they assume attitudes no 

 other bird would attempt and they accompany 

 these acrobatic feats with a loud nasal "yank. 



