PERCHING BIRDS. 



indeed being noted for their powers of song. They are less migratory 

 than insect-eating birds and some species a^e with us at all seasons. 

 Their abundance, musical gifts, and constant presence render them, 

 from the field student's point of view, highly important members of 

 the great class Aves. 



From an economic standpoint the Fringillidae are no less deserving 

 of our esteem. Some species are of incalcuable value as destroyers 

 of the seeds of noxious weeds. Fifteen hundred seeds have been 

 found in the stomach of one Snowflake or Snowbunting, and it has 

 been estimated by Professor Beal, of the Biological Survey of the 

 United States Department of Agriculture, that during the winter 

 season, in the single State of Iowa, where his studies were made, 

 Tree Sparrows devour no less than 875 tons of weed seeds, chiefly 

 of the ragweed. 



The Tanagers, (Family Tanagrida] are found only in the New 

 World, where they are most numerously represented in the tropics. 

 As a family they are remarkable for the brilliancy of their colors; the 

 common, but mistaken idea that most tropical birds are brightly clad 

 being in no small part due to the abundance of Tanagers and beauty of 

 their plumage. 



Only five of the some three hundred and fifty known species reach 

 the United States and these are migratory, coming to us in the spring 

 and returning to the tropics in the fall. Tanagers, as a rule, are not 

 possessed of much vocal ability, our species ranking high in their fam- 

 ily as songsters, the notes of many species being far less musical. 



Like most gaily costumed birds the plumages of many Tanagers un- 

 dergo striking changes in color with age and season. The male of our 

 Scarlet Tanager, for example, is olive-green with black wing-coverts 

 during his first winter, the scarlet plumage not being acquired until the 

 following spring. It is worn, however, only during the nesting season 

 after which the less conspicuous olive-green dress is again acquired, 

 the wings and tail, however, remaining black. 



Swallows, (Family Hirundinidce) are of world-wide distribution, and 

 as might be expected in birds possessing such remarkable powers of 

 flight, many of the species have unusually extended ranges. Our Barn 

 Swallow, for example, is found throughout North America in summer, 

 and in the winter it migrates as far south as southern Brazil. 



Birds of the air, the aerial habits of Swallows are reflected in their 



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