96 Handbook of Nature-Study 



noticeable when the bird is flying. The under parts and breast are 

 grayish white; the beak and legs are blackish. The food of the mocking- 

 birds is about half insects and half fruit. They live largely on the berries 

 of the red cedar, myrtle and holly, and we must confess are often too 

 devoted to the fruits in our orchards and gardens ; but let us put down to 

 their credit that they do their best to exterminate the cotton boll cater- 

 pillars and moths, and also many other insects injurious to crops. 



The mocker is full of tricks and is distinctly a bird of humor. He will 

 frighten other birds by screaming like a hawk and then seem to chuckle 

 over the joke. 



Sidney Lanier describes him well. 



Whate'er birds did or dreamed, this bird could say. 

 Then down he shot, bounced airily along 

 The sward, twitched in a grasshopper, made song 

 Midflight, perched, prinked, and to his art again. 



LESSON XXII 

 The Mocking Bird 



Leading thought — The mockingbird is the only one of our common 

 birds that sings regularly at night. It imitates the songs of other birds 

 and has also a beautiful song of its own. When feeding their nestlings, 

 the mockers do us great service by destroying insect pests. 



Method — Studies of this bird are best made individually by the pupils 

 through watching the mockers which haunt the houses and shrubbery. 

 If there are mockingbirds near the schoolhouse the work can be done in 

 the most ideal way by keeping records in the school of all the observations 

 made by the pupils, thus bringing out an interesting mockingbird story. 

 The experiment in teaching songs to the birds may best be made with pet 

 mockers. 



Observations — i. At what months of the year and for how many 

 months does the mockingbird sing in this locality? 



2. Does he sing only on moonlight nights? Does he sing all night? 



3. Can you distinguish the true mockingbird song from the songs 

 which he has learned from other birds ? Describe the actions of a mocker 

 when he is singing. 



4. How many songs of other birds have you heard a mocker give and 

 what are the names of these birds? 



5. Have you ever taught a mocker a tune by whistling it in his 

 presence? If so, tell how long before he learned it and how he acted 

 while learning. 



Describe the flight of the mockingbirds. Do they fly high in the air 

 like crows? 



7. Do these birds like best to live in wild places or about houses and 

 gardens ? 



8. Where do they choose sites for their nests? Do they make an 

 effort to hide the nest? If not, why? 



9. Of what material is the nest made? How is it lined? How far 

 from the ground is it placed? 



10. What are the colors of the eggs? How many are usually laid? 

 How long before they hatch? 



