NESTING HABITS OF BIRDS. 157 
with the feathered tribe, to fashion the nest of such 
materials as to make it inconspicuous, and harmonize 
with the neutral tints of the female bird. The scarlet 
tanager, that so delights us with his brilliant plumage 
of scarlet trimmed with black, has a pretty wife dressed 
in pale green, and the nest is also placed amid a thicket 
or bunch of green leaves, so that neither it nor the sit- 
ting bird will attract the attention of the passer-by. 
The humming bird saddles its delicate little house on 
the upper side of a mossy limb, and then covers the out- 
side with little patches of moss, just the color of the limb 
and bird, making it very difficult to detect it, except- 
ing by the closest observation or merest accident. The 
marsh wren builds in a tuft of marsh grass, making the 
structure partially of dried grass and interlining it with 
many growing spears of the same, thus leaving the 
rather bulky nest the least possible conspicuous, so 
that although they are very plentiful in certain locali- 
ties, especially on Strawberry Island, Niagara River, 
few are found until the grass becomes dead and thin. 
Most of the birds that nest on the ground use materials 
that harmonize with the earth, and also with the dusky 
color of the eggs, whereas those that build out of reach 
of enemies take no such precaution. The oriole uses 
light, attractive substances, and flaunts the exquisite 
structure in plain sight of man and all other enemies, 
relying for safety on its inaccessible situation. The 
swallow, guided by the same instinct or reason, fear- 
lessly approaches and leaves its nest, regardless of the 
presence of man. 
