BOBOLINK. 



Other birds may like to travel 

 alone, but when jolly Mr. Bobo- 

 link and his quiet little wife 

 come from the South, where they 

 have spent the winter, they 

 come with a large party of 

 friends. When South, they eat 

 so much rice that the people call 

 them Rice Birds. When they 

 come North, they enjoy eating 

 wheat, barley, oats and insects. 



Mr. and Mrs. Bobolink build 

 their simple little nest of grasses 

 in some field. It is hard to find 

 on the ground, for it looks just 

 like dry grass. Mrs. Bobolink 

 wears a dull dress, so she cannot 

 be seen when she is sitting on 

 the precious eggs. She does 

 not sing a note while caring 

 for the eggs. Why do you 

 think that is ? 



Mr. Bob-Linkum does not 

 wear a sober dress, as you can 

 see by his picture. He does not 

 need to be hidden. He is just 

 as jolly as he looks. Shall I 

 tell you how he amuses his mate 



while she is sitting? He springs 

 from the dew-wet grass with a 

 sound like peals of merry laugh- 

 ter. He frolics from reed to 

 post, singing as if his little 

 heart would burst with joy. 



Don't you think Mr. and Mrs. 

 Bobolink look happy in the 

 picture? They have raised 

 their family of five. Four of 

 their children have gone to look 

 for food ; one of them — he must 

 surely be the baby — would 

 rather stay with his mamma and 

 papa. Which one does he look 

 like? 



Many birds are quiet at noon 

 and in the afternoon. A flock 

 of Bobolinks can be heard sing- 

 ing almost all day long. The 

 song is full of high notes and 

 low, soft notes and loud, all 

 sung rapidly. It is as gay and 

 bright as the birds themselves, 

 who flit about playfully as they 

 sing. You will feel like laugh- 

 ing as merrily as they sing when 

 you hear it some day. 



9 6 



