72 BIRD-SONGS ABOUT WORCESTER. 



it begins high and loud, and gradually 

 descends, the last notes being scarcely au- 

 dible. The indigo-bird is generally found 

 in bushy pastures and clearings, and since, 

 like these birds, he sings far into the sum- 

 mer, I am apt to associate him in my mind 

 with the field-sparrow and .the chewink. I 

 often hear his song south of Bell Pond and 

 on the south slope of Chandler Hill, and I 

 sometimes hear him in the fields southwest 

 of Adams Square. 



The ruby-throated humming-bird (trochi- 

 lus colubris) belongs to the family of stri- 

 sores, or squeakers, like the chimney-swift 

 and the nighthawk. It is well known 

 that the humming-birds are confined ex- 

 clusively to the New World. The ruby- 

 throated is the only representative of 

 his family found within the boundaries 

 of the United States, while in tropical 

 South America genera, sub-genera, and 

 species are found innumerable, and new 

 ones are being discovered continually. 

 These winged gems are too well known to 

 require more than a passing notice. They 



