TOWHEE (Pipilo erythrophthalmus) 



Lcniitli, aliout 8'^ inches. ^lale mostly black, 

 l)ell\' white. I""enialc lirown. Outer tail feath- 

 ers white tipped. 



Range : lireeds in the United States from 

 Saskatchewan and southeastern Canada snuth 

 to central Kansas and northern Georgia; win- 

 ters trnni southeastern Nebraska and the Ohio 

 and Potomac southward. 



The t'lwdiee is a frequenter of second-growth 

 and of scrub, and when the visitor enters such 

 lirecincts he is pretty sure to hear the chal- 

 lenging cr_\', "die wink," and to catch sight of 

 tile bird as it hurriedly dashes into some 

 hrushy thicket as if in mortal terror. The 

 llight is hurried, jerky, and heavy, as though 

 the bird was accustomed to use its wings only 

 in emergencies. This is not far from being 

 the ease, as the towhee sticks close to mother 

 earth and uses its great strength and long 

 claws to advantage in making the leaves and 

 rubbish fly in its rigorous efforts to uncover 

 ihe seeds and insects U]30n wdiich it relies for 

 fond. Tile towhee thus literally scratches for 

 a li\ing as no other of our birds does, except 

 possibly the brown thrush, and the lazy man 

 may well pass by the industrious ant and go 

 lo the towhee for inspiration. No one waxes 

 enthusiastic over its musical ability, but the 

 song is given with such right good will that it 

 is snre to satisfy the bearer as, no doubt, it 

 does the Ijird himself. The towhee includes in 

 its bill of fare beetles and their larvje, ants, 

 moths, caterpillars, grasshoppers, and flits, and 

 also in Texas the b'.dl weevil. Wild fruit and 

 berries complete the list. 



ORCHARD ORIOLE (Icterus spurius) 



Length, about 7'4 inches. Our only oriole 

 with black ;m(l chestnut markings. b'emale 

 gr;i_\isli ()li\'e green. 



Range: Confined t(.) eastern North .-Vmeriea. 

 Breeds from North Dakota, Minnesota, Wis- 

 consin, Michigan, southern Ontario, central 

 New York, and .Abassacliusetts south to nnrtb- 

 eni Florida, the Gulf coast and southern .Mex- 

 ico, west to centrrd Nebr.aska and western 

 Kansas; winters from southern ifexieo to 

 northern Colombi,-i, 



Though clad in nmdest garb (for an oriole) 

 and in no respect a ri\al of the Baltimore, the 

 orchard oriole has merits of his own. .\s his 

 name implies, lie is a lo\er of orchards, and 1 

 liaxe always associated him with the glory of 

 aiiple orchards in full bloom and with the de- 

 licious perfume with which the air is hea\-y. 

 ."-Xmidst such surroundings, the black and chest- 

 nut livery of the orchard oriole marks him as 

 line of the jirinces of our bird world. Gar- 

 dens and parks also know him well, and lie is 

 imt a\erse to swinging his nest from the trees 

 that shade the farmer's house. His nest be- 

 trays his connection with the family of weav- 

 ers, lint his skill does nut equal that of the 

 Baltiiiinre ;iiid he is content with a smaller 

 pensile basket made cliietly of grasses. ITis 

 seiiig, like bis dress, is modest, but it is exceed- 

 ingly sweet, and one wdio hears it is sure to 

 pause in bis walk and wish that it were longer 

 and gi\'en niLire frequenth'. 



CALIFORNIA BROWN TOWHEE 

 (Pipilo crissalis and varieties) 



Length, about 9 inches. The long tail and 

 lirown plumage with white belly distinguish 

 these ground- and thicket-loving birds. 



Range : Southwestern Oregon, through Cali- 

 fornia to northern Lower California. 



The brown towhees, of which the California 

 form is a good type, are characteristic of the 

 brushy canyons of the far west, where they 

 skulk and hide among the shrubbery and cac- 

 tus much as do the common eastern towhees. 

 Their powers of wing are not great and their 

 long tails and heavy bodies render their flight 

 and<ward in the extreme. On the ground, 

 liowe\er, tliex' run with great ease and speed. 

 In California brown towdiees are common in 

 the parks and gardens, and in every way are 

 very much more familiar than the related tow- 

 hee of the east. Like its eastern cousin, it is 

 much addicted to scratchin.g among lea\es and 

 rubbish, for which work its stout legs and 

 claws are particularly adapted. The thin 

 "tchip," which is the call note, seems out of all 

 proportion coming from such a stout, vigorous 

 body. The birds of this group are not fine 

 songsters, but their simple ditties are pleasant 

 to hear in the waste iilaces where tlie\' are .gen- 

 eralh- found. 



The lirown towhee is much more of a "\'ege- 

 t.ari.'in than an insect eater, and in California 

 Professor Beal found that 85 per cent of its 

 yearly food consists of fruit, .grain, and weed 

 seeds. 



BALTIMORE ORIOLE (Icterus galbula) 



f.engtb, .iliout ~\'i inches. The cnnibin.ation 

 of black and orange marks this bird from its 

 fello\\"S. 



Range: Fireeds from central vSaskatchewan 

 and the southeastern ])ro\'inces of Canada 

 south to northern Tex.as, I^ouisiana, and north- 

 ern Georgia, west lo iMontana, Wyoming, and 

 eastern Coloradu; winters from southern ik-x- 

 icii to Ci.Ionibi:i. 



Liird llaltininre was signally honored when 

 one of our I'mest liirds was christened with his 

 name because it chanced to carry the family 

 colors — black and yellow. Orioles are a trop- 

 ical group and the luxuriant tropical forests 

 are bright with the .gleaming colors of many 

 species of these be;iuliful birds. Oiilv a few 

 li;i\e found their wa\- into the lemperate zone, 

 but not one of the tropical species is garbed 

 in more tasteful dress than this exotic which 

 lias .adopted the elms and sycamores of the 

 temperate zone for its summer home. When 

 chill No\-ember winds have stripped our shade 

 trees of their foliage then :ire rcx-ealed the 

 long, pendant nests, wrought with so much 

 skill and patience b.\- Madame Oriole, and we 

 begin to realize how many of these birds sum- 

 mer with us. Suitable material for the oriole 

 nest is none too easily found, and the wea\-er 

 is not so fastidious tli:it she will ni.it accept 

 strings and y.arn of ,any color which are hung 

 out fiu- her convenience; so tli;it at the end of 

 the oriole season the bird buer who is willing 

 to CDoperate with .a pair of Nature's weavers 

 may fall heir to a nest made to order. 



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