22 Cedar Birds and Berries [THIRD WEEK 



spotted and splashed with brown and black, guarded by a 

 pair of these exquisite birds, is a sight to delight the eye. 



When the young have left the nest, if alarmed by an 

 intruder, they will frequently, trusting to their protective 

 dress of streaky brown, freeze into most unbird-like atti- 

 tudes, drawing the feathers close to the body and stretching 

 the neck stiffly upward, almost bittern-like. Undoubt- 

 edly other interesting habits which these strangely pictu- 

 resque birds may possess, are still awaiting discovery by 

 some enthusiastic observer with a pair of opera-glasses 

 and a stock of that ever important characteristic 

 patience. 



Although, during the summer months, myriads of 

 insects are killed and eaten by the cedar waxwings, yet 

 these birds are pre-eminently berry eaters, choke-cherries, 

 cedar berries, blueberries, and raspberries being preferred. 

 Watch a flock of these birds in a cherry tree, and you 

 will see the pits fairly rain down. We need not place our 

 heads, a la Newton, in the path of these falling stones to 

 deduce some interesting facts, indeed to solve the very 

 destiny of the fruit. Many whole cherries are carried away 

 by the birds to be devoured elsewhere, or we may see 

 parent waxwings filling their gullets with ten or a dozen 

 berries and carrying them to the eager nestlings. 



Thus is made plain the why and the wherefore of the 

 coloured skin, the edible flesh, and the hidden stone of 

 the fruit. The conspicuous racemes of the choke-cherries, 

 or the shining scarlet globes of the cultivated fruit, fairly 

 shout aloud to the birds " Come and eat us, we're as 

 good as we look!" But Mother Nature looks on and 



