42 z WINTER NOTES 
from his home in the Canadas and sub-arctic regions. In 
northern New England the semi-diurnal Hawk Owl ( Syr- 
nia ulula Bon.) is comparatively common, and lurking 
near the hunter profits by the pieces of game which he 
throws away, or now and then captures wounded birds. 
-. Excepting the cruel, selfish and solitary raptorial 
species, our winter birds mostly associate in groups, not 
of individuals of a single kind merely, but of species, 
drawn together chiefly perhaps from similarity of food, 
and probably also from real love of each other's society. 
The winter representatives of these birds are of larger 
size, and of brighter colors than those seen in summer. 
Inthe savage Butcher Bird or Northern Shrike ( Colly- 
rio borealis Baird), which seems but a hawk in miniature, 
we have, nevertheless, an exception to the gregarious ten- 
dency generally observed in winter among ow’ smaller 
birds. He is one of our regular, but not very numerous 
visitors during the colder parts of the year, though less 
common than in the fall and spring; when those that 
winter farther south pass us in their migrations. It is, 
however, bolder, recklessly pouncing on birds in cages 
exposed near open windows. The song of a Canary will 
often retain him in the vicinity for a long time, waiting, 
restless and impatient from hunger, for an opportunity to 
make it his victim. In the woods he is continually quar- 
relling with the Jays, which both fear and hate him, and I 
have seen him in hot pursuit of a Chickadee, which was 
trembling with fright. 
In winter all our birds seem to possess an unusual in- 
terest, perhaps no less from their scarcity than from the 
cheeriness their presence secms to lend. None, however, 
are dearer to me than the little woodland group of Tit- 
mice, the Nuthatches, the Creepers, the diminutive King- 
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