330 BIRDS OF ONTARIO. 



spend their time quietly in the shade. In September it is again 

 heard, perhaps as a bugle note to call the flocks together before 

 starting for the south. We have no record of any being observed 

 during winter. 



Genus CARDINALIS Bonaparte. 

 CARDINALIS CARDINALIS (Linn.). 



239. Cardinal. (593) 



Mate : — Rich vermilion or rosy-red, obscured with ashy on the back ; face, 

 black; bill, reddish; feet, brown. i''ema?e.'— Ashy -brown, paler below, with 

 evident traces of the red on the crest, wings, tail and under parts. Length, 

 8-9 ; wing, about 3§ ; tail, 4. 



Hab. — Eastern United States, north to New Jersey and the Ohio Valley 

 (casually farther), west to the Plains. 



Nest, in a bush or low tree near the ground, usually not far from water, 

 composed of bark, leaves, grass and rootlets rather loosely put together. 



Eggs, three or four, greenish-white, thickly spotted with dark reddish- 

 brown often wreathed round the larger end. 



The Cardinal can only be regarded as a casual visitor along our 

 south-western border. It is quite common in Ohio, and, as might be 

 expected, a few occasionally cross the lake. Mr. Norval reports one 

 or two being found at Port Rowan, and Dr. Macallum mentions that 

 a few are seen every summer along the lake shore south of Dunnville, 

 where they are supposed to breed among the evergreens. They make 

 showy, interesting cage birds, on account of which great numbers are 

 caught in trap cages and sold in the southern markets. 



Dr. Coues describes the Cardinal as "a bird of striking appear- 

 ance and brilliant vocal powers, resident and abundant from the 

 Middle States southward ; inhabits thickets, tangle and undergrowth 

 of all kinds, whence issue its rich, rolling notes, while the performer, 

 brilliantly clad as he is, often eludes observation by his shyness, 

 vigilance and activity." 



