38 SOME CANADIAN BIRDS. 



to A warmer clime. . Sometimes a stray follow, separated from the 

 flock, and tempted, perhapH, by the brij^ht tints the lirst frosts have 

 painted, lingers on into September days, but he does not stay 

 long ; the north wind's chilling breath disturbs him, and the flowers 

 are dead. 



It is not the colors only of the flowers or their perfume that 

 wins for them the attention of these winged beauties. The nectas 

 which the birds draw from the flower's breast, and the minute in- 

 sects which gather within the flower's dainty cup, form the stiiple 

 food of the hummingbirds. Wo are indebted to the h»t'> Frank 

 Bolles for an addition to our knowledge of tliese birds' feeding 

 habits. Bolles discovered that they drink the sap which runs from 

 the holes bored by the yellow-billed woodpecker — "the sapsucker." 

 The hummers draw such food into their mouths by moans of their 

 tubular tongues, which servo as a suction pipe. Generally, when in 

 quest of food, our Dird darts from flower to flower with such swift 

 motion that the eye follows his progress with great difficulty ; the 

 wings vibrating so mpidly as to bo indistinct and to produce tlie 

 humming sound from which tho family derive their name. If the 

 flower is very large, the bird may perch on tho brim, and thrust 

 his head deep into its glowing corolla, but generally he hovers above 

 a blossom or poises at its side, and assuming a vertical position, 

 keeps his body steadily in place by moving the wings backwards and 

 forwards, his tail being thrust forward at the same time. 



When he invades the garden, this diminutive but plucky fellow 

 seems indifferent to the presence of mankind, and does not hesitate 

 to gather tribute from the very bush tho gardener is pruning, or to 

 sip the sweets from the bouquet my lady is cutting for her table. 

 I remember well the astonishment and delight with which a party 

 of young ladies watched such a performance one bright September 

 morning amid the New Hampshire hills. One of the party had 

 been picking nasturtiums, and came on the veranda holding in her 

 hand a large bunch of the brilliant blossoms. While she stood 

 chatting with her friends a hummingbird darted among them, and 

 without displaying any signs of timidity or embarrassment, hovered 

 over the flowers in the young lady's hand, and calmly probed them 

 with his long bill. Each time he thrust hia head at a flower he 

 uttered a short ejaculatory squeak, but whether it expressed satis- 



