i;U LIFE-HISTORIES OF BIRDS 



clambering up the side of a tree, as if expressive of a feeling 

 of delight at the capture of a juicy insect. 



Like its near relative, it is a comparatively selfish and 

 unsocial creature during the famine winter months, seem- 

 ingly oblivious of its fellows, and caring onlv for self. In 

 this particular, it does not stand alone, as most of our winter 

 denizens, during this period of the year, lead a solitary exis- 

 tence. Even where the birds are more or less gregarious. 

 as in the cases of A. mpcUs cedrormii and Passer domesticus, 

 this selfish spirit does not fail to manifest itself. Where a 

 rich repast offers itself, each bird endeavors to sjcure the lion's 

 share, so to speak, and will even contend with his fellows. 



The Downy "Woodpecker, though a highly insectivorous 

 species, will not hesitate to eat seeds and fruits when there 

 is a scarcity of its favorite food-stuffs. In the winter, it sub- 

 sists upon the larvae and pupae of divers beetles as well as 

 the mature insects themselves; small spiders which harbor 

 beneath decayed bark ; berries of yuitipcrus Virginia net 

 and Lojiiccra pc.ric1yinc.nnm: and seeds of grasses. Its bill 

 of fare then consists of the following beetles : Cratonychus 

 cinerens, C. pcrtinax. Rhynckcenus strobi, HarpaJns coin- 

 par and //. pensylvanicus* Later, Platynus cnpripcnnis, 

 Chrysomela caruleipennis, Scarites subterraneus, among 

 coleoptera ; and caterpillars of Anisopteryx vernata, .1. 

 ponicta /'/<?, Serene catenaria, Clisiocampa americana. with 

 imagos of various noctuids and tortricids, aphides, and the 

 common Formica sail-guinea* are destroyed in vast numbers. 

 It is evident from the above statements that this species is 

 not exclusively arboricole in its habits, but often condescends 

 to come down to the ground to procure what is denied to it 

 in its more elevated abode. 



As the breeding-period approaches, these birds become 

 more eminently social. Different species are frequently seen 

 together, among whom the greatest harmony prevails. The 

 abundance of insect-life to be found everywhere, lessens the 

 strain which they have to endure when winter prevails, and 



