OF NEW ENGLAND. 315 



though merry sound, and finally a lower note, chiefly of affec- 

 tion, to which rnan} r of their names owe their origin, such as that 

 of " flicker." This last cry is a series of dissyllabic notes, and 

 sounds like wick'-a-wick'-a-wick'-a-wick'-a-wick'-a-wick'-a. This 

 is rarely heard unless two birds are together. 



The Golden-winged Woodpeckers are undoubtedly less bene- 

 ficial than many others of their tribe, but they never do enough 

 injury to warrant their death at the hands of farmers. They 

 are, however, but little molested, I believe, except by young 

 sportsmen. 



II. MELANERPES 



(A) ERYTHROCEPHALUS. 10 Red-headed Woodpecker. 



(Scarcely now to be ranked as a bird of Massachusetts.) 



(a). About 9J inches long. Head, crimson. Interscapu- 

 lars, wings, and tail, blue-black, highly glossed on the back 

 and shoulders. Other parts (and the secondaries), whit6. 



(6). The eggs average about 1-10 X *85 of an inch. See 

 I, A, b. 



(c). The Red-headed Woodpeckers were once common about 

 Boston, but I have seen but one within the last five years. I 

 know no part of New England where they are not rare, and 

 I shall therefore quote a large part of Wilson's biography of 

 this species. "There is perhaps no bird in North America 

 more universally known than this. His tri-colored plumage, 

 red, white, and black glossed with steel blue, is so striking, 

 and characteristic ; and his predatory habits in the orchards 

 and corn fields, added to his numbers and fondness for hover- 

 ing along the fences, so very notorious, that almost every child 

 is acquainted with the Red-headed Woodpecker. In the imme- 

 diate neighbourhood of our large cities, where the old timber 

 is chiefly cut down, he is not so frequently found ; and yet at 

 this present time, June, 1808, I know of several of their nests 

 within the boundaries of the city of Philadelphia. Two of 



10 The Ked-bellied Woodpecker (Centurus Carolinensis, with the crown and nape 

 bright red, or in the female partly so) may rarely occur in New England. 



