45 



by low, lisping, wiry notes, which are only audible at a short distance. 

 They are partial to the groves of red cedar, but are frequently found, 

 in flocks, in the deciduous woods ; there they are generally attended 

 by numbers of small flycatching birds, chiefly of the genera Vireo and 

 Empidonax, which follow, apparently for the purpose of capturing the 

 insects which are roused from the bark. They are of irregular occur- 

 rence throughout winter. Were very abundant in March, 1874, when 

 large flocks were seen amongst the pine trees, along the Hudson, 

 chasing each other through the forest with loud, rattling cries, and 

 rollicking together in a most joyous and imcreeper-like manner. 



Dimensions. Average measurements of nine specimens : length, 

 4-62; stretch, 8-22; wing, 2-66; tail, 2-58. 



Family, CERTHIIDJB. 



14. Certhia familiaris, Linne. BROWN CREEPER. An abundant, 

 but somewhat irregular winter resident, and indeed is found com- 

 monly throughout the year, except during the nestling period, during 

 which none have been observed, though it remains till late in May. 

 The Creeper is partial, in winter, to the evergreens, as indeed are 

 most of our small wintering birds. It possesses, besides the usual 

 prolonged, wheezy note of which the species is by no means chary, 

 a variety of feeble, chirping utterances, resembling those of the 

 Golden-crested Kinglet. The Creeper is usually a tame bird, paying 

 less heed to its admirers than to the capture of insects that infest the 

 bark of trees; that being the main purpose of its life. With that 

 object In view, it alights at the base of a tree and begins to ascend in 

 a spiral; in this manner it advances till the trunk and principal 

 branches have been explored, when, having reached the top, it spreads 

 its wings and with a pretty, sweeping movement, attaches itself to the 

 extreme base of another tree, when the same performance is repeated. 

 Thus the Creeper has many ups and downs in its life, though, on the 

 whole, its is a monotonous career of labor ; but in spite of this the 

 bird is interesting, and its habits have a certain fascination. Its 

 sombre colors serve an excellent purpose for concealment, matching 

 so well those of the trees upon which it lives as to make it very 

 inconspicuous. 



Its long, slender, curved bill seems ill adapted as a means of musi- 

 cal expression; and indeed I never suspected it of possessing such 

 attributes, until I one day discovered that it was the author of a very 

 pleasant song. This happened on April 1, 1878, when I heard a sweet 

 warble, moderately loud, that puzzled me as to its authorship, until I 

 at length saw the bird singing, quite close to me, as it clung to the 

 side of a tree. Like the Nuthatches and Titmice, it is fond of raw 



