i6o Birds of Buzzard's Roost 



pressed by the hosts of birds that thronged the forest, but none 

 of them cheered and delighted him as much as did the oriole 

 with its gay coat and sweet song. So much pleased was 'he 

 that its colors orange and black became the heraldic colors 

 of the first lords of Maryland, and since then the bird has 

 borne his name. 



In its migration, the Baltimore oriole comes north during 

 the latter part of April ; I always look for it on the twenty- 

 second day of that month. It returns south by the middle of 

 September. Its range extends north to the southern border 

 of the Dominion of Canada, from Nova Scotia and southern 

 New Brunswick westward through Ontario and Manitoba to 

 Saskatchewan, where it reaches its northern known limits in 

 latitude 50 degrees ; west to eastern Assiniboia, the eastern 

 part of Montana, Colorado and Texas ; south in winter 

 through Mexico and Central America to Panama. The males 

 come north first, and until the females come are very restless 

 and keep up an almost continuous calling. The one across 

 the street from Elmhurst seems to say, "Come to me dearie, 

 come to me dearie," and is much delighted when she comes. 

 By this it is believed that they mate for life. It certainly is 

 true that they are much devoted to each other, and that when 

 a pair of them have located, they or others of their kind, will 

 be found in that locality for many years afterwards: 



The Baltimore oriole is universally admired, both for the 

 richness of his color and the sweetness of his song. The bill 

 of the adult male is almost straight, strong, tapering to a sharp 

 point, black, and sometimes lead colored above, the lower 

 mandible light blue towards the base ; iris of the eye hazel ; 

 the head, neck all around, forepart of the back, wings and part 

 of the tail black; the greater wing coverts are margined with 

 white ; the lesser wing coverts, the posterior of the back, and 

 the whole under parts, bright orange, deepening into vermillion 

 on the breast; the black on the shoulders is also divided by 

 a band of orange ; tips of the two middle tail feathers and the 

 ends of the others are of a dull orange ; tail slightly forked ; 

 legs and feet light blue or of a lead color. The adult female is 

 half an inch shorter than the male, with the head, neck and 

 forepart of the back, mixed with dull yellow ; hind part of the 



