THE EVENING GROSBEAK. 



In the far Northwest we find 

 this beautiful bird the year 

 around. During the winter he 

 often comes farther south in 

 company with his cousin, the 

 Rose-breasted Grosbeak. 



What a beautiful sight it 

 must be to see a flock of these 

 birds — Evening Grosbeaks and 

 Rose-breasted in their pretty 

 plumage. 



Grosbeaks belong to a family 

 called Finches. The Sparrows, 

 Buntings, and Crossbills belong 

 to the same family. It is the 

 largest family among birds. 



You will notice that they all 

 have stout bills. Their food is 

 mostly grains and their bills are 

 well formed to crush the seeds. 



Look at your back numbers of 

 ^^ Birds" and notice the pictures 

 of the other Finches I have 

 named. Don't you think Dame 

 Nature is very generous with 

 her colors sometimes ? 



Only a few days ago while 

 strolling through the woods with 

 my field glass, I saw a pretty 

 sight. On one tree I saw a Red- 

 headed Woodpecker, a Flicker, 

 an Indigo Bunting, and a Rose- 

 breasted Grosbeak. I thought 

 then, if we could only have the 

 Evening Grosbeak our group of 

 colors would be complete. 



Have you ever wondered at 

 some birds being so prettily 

 dressed while others have such 

 dull colors ? 



Some people say that the birds 

 who do not sing must have 

 bright feathers to make them 

 attractive. We cannot believe 

 this. Some of our bright colored 

 birds are sweet singers, and 

 surely many of our dull colored 

 birds cannot sing very well. 



Next month you will see the 

 pictures of several home birds. 

 See if dulFcolors have anything 

 to do with sweet song. 



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