top a long thyrse of orange-scarlet, very showy blossoms. The woods are enamelled w^ith 

 flowers, and though most of them are not so well known as the foregoing, they are 

 no less beautiful. A dwarf spiderwort', with tuberous roots and rosy-red flowers, 

 exhaling the fragrance of the heliotrope, grows abundantly in the sandy soil. The yellow 

 zephyr flower^ and several species of "rain flowers'" spring up as if by magic after a 

 heavy rain. Cacti of diflerent species are common plants of the post oak region. 



Bird-life is more conspicuous and abundant in these v^roodlands than farther north. 

 The neighborhood of my cabin, near West Yegua Creek, was fairly swarming with 

 birds, and I shall never forget the inimitable bird concerts heard day and night in the 

 beautiful days of spring, in 1881 and 1882. It would be a long list should I attempt 

 to mention the names of the diiferent performers. All the birds seemed to strike happy 

 chords, save the Wood Pewee, whose plaintive call-note never ceased, and the still more 

 characteristic Crested Flycatcher, an exceedingly melancholic member of the wood- 

 land choir. Nowhei-e have 1 found this bird more numerous than in the post oak region 

 of Texas. Being naturally a shy and suspicious bird, it appeared to look upon me as a 

 protector, coming fearlessly near my cabin and accepting trustfully one of the bird-boxes 

 placed in an oak. 



Its occurrence, however, is not confined to the post oak woods of Texas, being 

 found as far north as the 40° of latitude. It is rare in the North. In Wisconsin as well 

 as in the northern parts of Illinois I have observed it only now and then, and according 

 to our leading ornithologists it is by no means numerous in New England. In south- 

 w^estem Missouri it is rather common, though exceedingly retired in its habits. Near 

 the Chattahoochee, in Klorida, I noticed the Crested Flycatcher to be almost as abundant 

 as in Texas. It ranges from the Atlantic west to Kansas and the Indian Territory. 

 In Lee Co., Texas, I have never seen it before April 1. At Freistatt, Mo., I observed 

 its arrival May 2 in 1883; April 28 in 1884; May 2 in 1885, and April 29 in 1886. 

 In Sheboygan Co., Wis., it scarcely ever arrives before May 20. Wherever the bird 

 occurs it cannot be overlooked by those acquainted with our feathered friends, as its 

 unique plaintive whistling call-note sounds loudly through the forest. Whoever has once 

 become acquainted w^ith these notes, can never forget them. They are as peculiar to 

 this Flycatcher as the mewing sounds to the Catbird, the bob-white to the Quail, and 

 the djay to the Blue Jay. These conspicuous notes sound through the forest throughout 

 the day when the weather is fair. Were it not for its call-notes, the shy and retired bird 

 w^ould scarcely attract our attention, but its loud, long-draw^n, and plaintive whistle, 

 sounding like hay-beed, bay-heed, soon betrays its whereabouts. None of our birds 

 utters similar sounds, and therefore they are not likely to be mistaken for any other. 

 Often v^'^e hear another whistling call, not quite as plaintive as those described above, 

 reminding us of the Bob-white's familiar sound. Though these notes resound so frequently, 

 we rarely have an opportunity of seeing the bird. It is almost every w^here a shy 

 woodland inhabitant, understanding perfectly w^ell to escape observation, its brownish 

 neutral color being of great advantage in this respect. When perched on a dry branch 

 near dry leaves, it is not readily detected. When approached too closely, it takes wing 

 and swiftly disappears. In this respiect it is quite different from the Scissor-tailed 



1 Tradescantia rosea(?). 2 Zephyranthes tcxensis. 3 Cooperia Dramwondii and C. pedunculata. 



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