THE RED-EYED FLYCATCHER. 147 



great size, are very conspicuous, as the wind sways them back- 

 wards and forwards from the bough. 



Before leaving the American pensile birds, we must briefly 

 notice one or two other species. The Flycatchers of all coun- 

 tries are generally notable for the beauty or eccentricity of their 

 nests, one of the oddest being that of the Great Crested 

 Flycatcher of America, which always uses the cast slough of 

 snakes when building its nest. The reason no one seems to 

 know, though several opinions have been offered ; one person 

 thinking the snake-slough is peculiarly grateful to the young 

 birds which are intended to lie upon it ; and another, that the 

 presence of the cast slough acts as a scarecrow, and frightens 

 away obnoxious birds. One conjecture is as good as another, 

 and both are absurdly bad. 



The species which we have now to notice is the Red-Eyed 

 Flycatcher {Muscicapa olivaced) popularly known as ' Whip- 

 Tom- Kelly,' from its peculiar articulate cry, which is said to 

 bear a strangely exact resemblance to the words ' Tom Kelly, 

 Whip-to m-kel-ly,' and is uttered so loudly and briskly, that it 

 can be heard at a considerable distance. It inhabits a tolerably 

 wide range of country, being found from Georgia to the St. 

 Lawrence, and in many parts is plentiful. 



The nest of the Red-Eyed B'lycatcher is small and very neatly 

 made, and, contrary to the usual custom of pensile nests, is 

 placed near the ground, seldom at a height of more than five 

 feet. Bushes and dwarf trees, such as dogwood or saplings, are 

 usually chosen by the bird when it looks about for a branch 

 wherefrom to hang its nest. A wonderful array of materials is 

 employed by the feathered architect, which makes use of bits 

 of hornets' nests, dried leaves, flax-fibres, strips of vine bark, 

 fragments of paper and hair, and binds all these articles firmly 

 together with the silk produced by some caterpillars. The 

 lining is made of fine grasses, hair, and the delicate bark of the 

 vine. 



The nest is wonderfully strong, so compact indeed, that after 

 it has served the purpose of its architect, it is usurped by other 



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