FOUR NEIGHBORS DIVERSE 



for its voluble singing, it would seem much scarcer than 

 it really is. There is another vireo which is quite like 

 it, a rare migrant, the Philadelphia Vireo, which may 

 be distinguished by uniform pale greenish-yellow color 

 of its entire under-parts. 



The remaining other two kinds are named after the 

 color of their eyes, or iris — ^White-eyed and Red-eyed 

 Vireo. The former has a ring of yellowish feathers 

 around the eyes, and is a bird of the swampy thicket, 

 a hard bird to study, as its haunts are so impenetrable. 

 However, I have managed to find its nest, suspended 

 in a low bush in the dense tangle of a swamp, though 

 were it not for the fact that the little fellow is such a 

 capital singer and mimic, the most accomplished 

 vocally of all our vireos, even the bird lover might not 

 suspect its presence. Even as it is, with all its fine 

 singing, few people know of its existence. 



If there is any vireo at all well-known, it is the Red- 

 eyed Vireo, or "Preacher-bird," as some have called it, 

 readily distinguishable by white stripe over the eye. 

 It is one of our most abundant woodland birds, and is 

 also often found in shade trees or orchards. No bird's 

 nest is more often found in the woods than the Red- 

 eye's. One winter day, while taking a walk in the 

 woods with Ned and another boy, I noticed a number 

 of these nests on the bare branches. "Boys," said I, 

 "stop a moment and tell me how many vireos' nests 

 you can discover right from where you stand." The 

 boys began to peer about, and after some little time 



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