SONGLESS BIRDS OF ORCHARD AND WOODLAND. 231 
it also picks up many which are stirring only very early in 
‘the morning or at evening. The bird watches for cater- 
pillars, and when it sees one stir, flies from its perch and 
snaps up the luckless creature. This bird, in common with 
other Flycatchers, picks up many caterpillars 
that, to escape Warblers and other enemies, 
spin down on their webs or drop from the 
: ; Fig. 89.—Can- 
trees. The greatest service our little Fly- — kerworm, nat. 
* ural size. 
catcher renders to man consists of the destruc- . 
tion of such orchard pests as boring beetles, bark beetles, 
the fly of the railroad worm, codling moths, gipsy moths, 
cankerworms, and other caterpillars.  - 
Nuttall says that when the young are out of the nest they 
move about in company with the old birds, eating whortle- 
berries and cornel berries. 
Wood Pewee. 
Contopus virens. 
Length. — Six to about six and one-half inches. 
Adult. — Tail notched ; bill black above, light below; upper parts dark brownish- 
gray; two whitish wing bars; under parts whitish, the sides washed with 
dark gray, showing a light line down the centre of the breast. 
Nest: — Rather flat, and usually saddled on a nearly horizontal limb, from ten to 
forty feet up, beautifully decorated externally with lichens. 
Eggs. — Creamy white ; handsomely marked, with a ring of dark spots around the 
larger end. 
Season. — May to September. 
The Wood Pewee is, as its name implies, a bird of either 
coniferous or deciduous. woodland ; but it seems to prefer 
the more open, deciduous woods, particularly the oaks, on 
which its nest is often placed. It usually perches on dead 
branches at some height from the ground, and flies out, to 
some distance, taking one or many insects at each sally. 
The note of this bird is one of the characteristic sounds of 
the forest shades, and is heard throughout the day in those 
cool retreats where the heat of the summer sun is softened 
by the interposition of umbrageous foliage. Here, where 
sunshine and shadow fleck the leafy ground, the Pewee’s call 
sounds ever pensive, sweet, and clear. The bird is thought 
by some to be of a sad disposition; but the sadness of its 
call, which harmonizes so well with its forest environment, 
