138 Land Birds of New England 



LITERATURE : 



Little Brothers of the Air. OLIVE THORNE MILLER. 

 In Nesting-Time. IBID. 



78. CRESTED FLYCATCHER 



{Myiarchus crinitus. 



Upper parts olivaceous ; throat and forebreast slate, passing into 

 yellow on the belly ; wing with two whitish bars, and the quills 

 edged some with whitish and some with chestnut ; tail with the 

 inner side of each quill chestnut, so that the tail looks decid- 

 edly reddish from below. Slight crest. Beak broad, flat, black ; 

 feet black. Bird about half-way in size between a robin and 

 a sparrow. 



THIS fine bird comes to us about the middle of 

 May, and leaves again early in September. It is 

 a rather rare and local bird, but I have met it in 

 Wellesley without special search. It frequents wood- 

 lands, choosing deciduous rather than evergreen 

 trees, and, so far as my experience goes, choosing 

 the edges rather than the deeper part. He usually 

 perches near the top of a high tree, whence he 

 makes those sallies after insects which are charac- 

 teristic of the whole flycatcher group. In the fall, 

 however, he is said to feed almost entirely upon 

 various kinds of berries. 



The nest is built in the hollow of a tree or occa- 

 sionally in a bird-box, and the place selected is 

 either woodland or a deserted orchard. Eggs are 

 laid about the middle of June. 



