154 
OUR HOME BIRDS. 
geous dress is changed, in moulting, for an ugly robe 
of greenish-yellow, dappled with spots of scarlet ; and 
in this shabby condition he leaves us. Mrs. Tanager 
is green above and yellow below, the wings and tail 
a rusty black, edged with green. 
u The food of this bird consists of large winged 
insects — wasps, hornets, and humble-bees ; he has also 
a fondness for huckleberries. ‘Among all the birds 
that inhabit our woods, there is none that strikes 
the eye of a stranger, or even a native, with so much 
brilliancy as this. Seen among the green leaves, 
with the light falling strongly on his plumage, he 
really appears beautiful. His manners are modest, 
easy, and inoffensive. He commits no depredation's 
on the property of the husbandman, but rather ben- 
efits him by the daily destruction in spring of many 
noxious insects ; and when winter approaches he is 
no plundering dependant, but seeks in a distant coun- 
try for that sustenance which the severity of the 
season denies to his industry in this. He is a strik- 
ing ornament to our rural scenery, and none of the 
meanest of our rural songsters.’ 
“ Scarlet tailagers are particularly watchful over 
their nests while the young are unfledged. If any 
one approaches one of these domicils, the male keeps 
at a distance, as if afraid of being seen, while his 
mate hovers about in the greatest agitation and dis- 
