THE SCARLET TANAGER, 



[Piranga eryihromelas.) 



"High among the tree tops of the 

 cool, green woods the Tanager sings 

 through the summer days. Hidden by 

 the network of leaves above us, we 

 often pass him by; but once discovered 

 he seems to illuminate the forest. We 

 marvel at his color. He is like a Bird 

 of Paradise in our northern landscape.'' 

 These are the words of Florence Mer- 

 riam, but they perfectly describe the 

 thoughts of all who, visiting delightful 

 woods, have had the pleasure of watch- 

 ing and hearing the dignified and bril- 

 liant Scarlet Tanager in his home, where 

 his colors are emphasized by a back- 

 ground of rich green. His home is the 

 woods and there he spends much of his 

 time in the company of his mate. While 

 she wears a more somber colored dress 

 she is none the less beautiful. Above 

 her plumage is olive-green and below 

 it is a greenish yellow color, while the 

 feathers of her wings and tail are 

 dusky with an edging of olive-green. 

 Her colors perfectly blend with the 

 foliage and thus she is not readily seen 

 while performing the duties of a mother 

 bird. Both she and her mate are sedate 

 birds and though interested in the 

 movements of an intruder, they watch 

 him in a quiet and dignified manner. 



The range of this elegant bird is 

 fortunately an extensive one, including 

 the United States east of the Great 

 Plains, and from Manitoba, Ontario and 

 New Brunswick southward, through 

 Central America to northern South 

 America. Only the northern part of 

 its range, however, is honored with its 

 nests. From southern Illinois and Vir- 

 ginia northward to the limits of its 

 range these homes are usually built in 

 oak or hickory trees, generally twenty 

 or more feet above the ground. Some- 

 times, however, the nests are placed in 



smaller trees or shrubs at a height of 

 from five to twenty feet above the 

 ground. The nests are placed near the 

 end of a horizontal branch and either 

 saddled upon it or so placed as to be 

 supported by the diverging twigs. The 

 nests are loosely constructed of wiry 

 grasses, twigs, strips of bark, weed 

 stalks and similar materials and lined 

 with vine tendrils, blossom stems and 

 fine rootlets. While the walls are thin 

 and the cavity is shallow, the Tanager's 

 nest is not a frail structure, even though 

 the materials are frequently so loosely 

 interwoven that the eggs may be seen 

 through the interstices of its bottom. 

 Though both the Tanager and his 

 mate are easily identified by their colors, 

 they may also be known by the char- 

 acteristic call notes chip-chirr used by 

 both birds. These notes are also uttered 

 when the nest or young are disturbed, 

 with marked emphasis. The males ar- 

 rive at the site of their summer home a 

 few days before their mates, and are 

 sometimes seen in parties of four or 

 five, forming a brilliant group. At no 

 other time do the males associate to- 

 gether, for as soon as they are mated 

 each devotes his time to his bird wife. 

 Before the arrival of the females prac- 

 tically the only notes uttered by the 

 male are those of the ordinary call. 

 After their arrival a change takes place 

 and the **loud, cheery, rhythmical carol" 

 of this Redbird of the forest may be 

 heard among the tree tops throughout 

 the morning hours. While its song 

 suggests that of the robin in its modu- 

 lations, the notes are shriller and sharp- 

 edged and uttered more hurriedly and 

 "enunciated with a peculiar wavering 

 style." The song, while varied and de- 

 liberate, is always uttered in a cheerful 

 tone. While his mate attends to the 

 duties of their home, he frequently visits 



3S 



