72 



AMERICAN ORNITHOLOGY. 



Among the smaller birds the Kinglets and Gnatcatchers are remark- 

 able for their diligence in hunting. They have a peculiar way of exam- 

 ining the foliage and blossoms rather than the surface of the branches, 

 and their motions are very conspicuous upon the outer parts of the 

 trees near the extremity of the twigs. The Gnatcatchers especially are 

 exceedingly active and graceful, and take insects on the wing with 

 wonderful dexterity. On the other hand, the Chickadee,- Creeper, and 

 Wren, seek their food while creeping round the branches, -and take very 

 little of it from the foliage. Round and round they go, seldom paus- 

 ing in their circuitous course, and usually proceeding from the junction 

 of the branches to their extremities, hopping from spray to spray, and 

 then passing to another tree. As the Kinglets and Gnatcatchers con- 

 fine themselves almost exclusively to examining the foliage, they go 

 when the leaves fall; the bark protectors, however, remain long after 

 the trees are bare, and not infrequently through the entire winter. 



The Wood Pewee may be taken as a good example of 

 the Flycatcher family. His manner of foraging is to sit 

 on a twig, almost without motion but with a frequent 

 movement of the head indicative of watchfulness. That 

 he is not idle is shown by his frequent flittings out in an 

 irregular circuit, and immediately return- 

 ing to his perch with a captured insect. 

 These salient flights are very numerous, 

 and he often turns a somersault in the act 

 of capturing his prey. He rarely misses 

 his aim, and often collects from ten to 

 fifteen insects of an appreciable size in a minute. Forming «• inter- 

 mediate genus between the Sylvians and Flycatchers, and partaking of 

 the habits of each, are the Vireos. These birds are peculiar to Ameri- 

 ca; and all are gifted songsters. Some of them, indeed, keep up a sort 

 of intermittent singing even while hunting for their food. The Preach- 

 er Vireo especially seems to make warbling his principle employment. 

 He is never, apparently, very diligent or earnest, but often stops dur- 

 ing his desultory exhortation to seize a passing insect, and then resume 

 his song. 



Among the natural guardians of the trees are the Woodpeckers, 

 which gather their food as they creep round the tree trunks and branches. 

 They have two toes before and two behind tor climbing, and may 

 usually be seen clinging erect on the tree trunks; but rarely, if ever, 

 with head downward, like the Nuthatches and Titmice. As the food 

 of the Woodpecker is nearly as abundant in winter as in summer 

 they are seldom migratory; They never forage in flocks, like some of 



