THE CEDAR BIRD. 115 



dying away on the ear, according to the fluctuations of the 

 breeze." 



Habitat: Eastern North America, north to Labrador, 

 west to the Rocky Mountains, breeding throughout its 

 range. I saw none in Manitoulin Island and vicinity 



As to the so-called Bronzed Grakle [Quiscalus purpureus 

 /zneus), now differentiated by some, and supposed to breed 

 a little further north than the last described, I have had no 

 opportunity of discriminating. If, indeed, it be different 

 from the Common Crow Blackbird, it must be very similar. 



The Boat-tailed Grakle of the south [Quisealus major) is 

 scarcely more than the former on a larger pattern. About 

 16.00 long, it is about one-fourth larger, and its habits 

 are very similar. The flight is slow, straightforward, the 

 heavy boat-shaped tail seeming to tip the bird up in front. 

 It is noisy, and partial to the vicinity of water, often wading 

 for its molluscous diet. Its nests, which are in community 

 after the manner of its congener here and also its corvine 

 relations in the old world, is sometimes placed in a bush or 

 tree, but commonly in the tall saw-grass of the southern 

 marshes. The structure is large and coarse, is tied to the 

 grass-stems about four feet from theground, and generally 

 contains three eggs, similar to those of the Crow Black- 

 bird, but larger — about 1.27 X -85. It winters in the 

 extreme Southern States, and reaches regularly the Carolinas 

 in summer. 



THE CEDAR BIRD. 



On the top of the bluff stands the first row of trees of a 

 large orchard. On one of these alights a flock of birds, 

 sometimes found here in small numbers even in winter, but 

 always appearing in flocks very early in spring. There are 

 some forty of them, and they move with the regularity of 

 a perfectly disciplined army, flying as compactly as pos- 



