BLUE-BIRD. 61 



among the grass, at a considerable distance; and after feeding on 

 it, instantly resume their former position. But whoever informed 

 Dr. Latham that " this bird is never seen on trees, tho it makes its 

 nest in the holes of them!''* might as well have said, that the 

 Americans are never seen in the streets, tho they build their houses 

 by the sides of them. For what is there in the construction of the 

 feet and claws of this bird to prevent it from perching ? Or what 

 sight more common to an inhabitant of this country than the Blue* 

 bird perched on the top of a peach or apple-tree ; or among the 

 branches of those reverend broad-armed chesnut trees, that stand 

 alone in the middle of our fields, bleached by the rains and blasts 

 of ages ? 



The Blue-bird is six inches and three quarters in length, the 

 wings remarkably full and broad ; the whole upper parts are of a 

 rich sky blue, with purple reflections; the bill and legs are black; 

 inside of the mouth and soles of the feet yellow, resembling the 

 color of a ripe persimmon ; the shafts of all the wing and tail fea- 

 thers are black ; throat, neck, breast, and sides partially under the 

 wings, chesnut; wings dusky black at the tips; belly and vent 

 white; sometimes the secondaries are exteriorly light brown, but 

 the bird has in that case not arrived at his full color. The female 

 is easily distinguished by the duller cast of the back, the plumage 

 of which is skirted with light brown, and by the red on the breast 

 being much fainter, and not descending near so low as in the male; 

 the secondaries are also more dusky. This species is found over 

 the whole United States; in the Bahama islands where many of 

 them winter; as also in Mexico, Brazil, and Guiana* 



Mr, Edwards mentions that the specimen of this bird which 

 he was favored with, was sent from the Bermudas; and as these 

 islands abound with the cedar, it is highly probable that many of 

 those birds pass from our continent thence, at the commencement 



* Synopsis, v. II, p. 446 — 40. 



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