THE G RESTED ORIOLE. 
325 
end with, purplish spots, and covered at the smaller end with a great number of fine intersecting 
lines of the same hue. The food of the Baltimore Oriole seems to be almost entirely ot an 
animal nature, and to consist of caterpillars, beetles, and other insects, most of them injurious 
to the farmer or the gardener. 
The coloring of this bird is as follows : The head and throat, together with the upper part 
of the back and the wings, are deep black, with the exception of an orange bar upon the 
shoulders. The lower part of the back and the whole of the under surface are bright orange, 
warming into scarlet on the breast. The edges of the secondaries, the exterior edges of the 
greater wing-coverts, and part of those of the primaries, are white. The tail is rather curiously 
colored, and thus described by Wilson : “The tail-feathers under the coverts, orange; the 
two middle ones from thence to the tips are black, the next five on each side black near the 
coverts, and orange towards the extremities, so disposed that when the tail is expanded and 
the coverts removed, the black appears in the form of a pyramid supported on an arch of 
orange.” The female is dull black upon the upper parts and mottled with brownish -yellow, 
each feather being marked with that tint upon the edges. The lower part of the back and all 
the under portions of the body are dull orange, and the tail is mostly olive-yellow. The wings 
are dull brown, and marked with yellowish -white upon the coverts. 
From these colors the bird has derived the names of Golden "Robin and Fire Bird. Its total 
length is about seven inches. 
The Baltimore Oriole belongs to a genus almost wholly American, though what are termed 
the true Orioles are Old World birds. The song of this bird is a clear, mellow whistle, 
repeated at short intervals, as he gleans among the branches. There is in it a certain wild 
plaintiveness and naivete extremely interesting. It is not uttered with the rapidity of the 
ferrugineus thrush, and some other eminent songsters, but with the pleasing tranquillity of 
a careless plough-boy, whistling merely for his own amusement. When alarmed by an 
approach to his nest, or any such circumstance, he makes a kind of rapid chirping — very 
different from his usual note. This, however, is always succeeded by those mellow tones 
which seem so congenial to his nature. 
High, on yon poplar, clad in glossiest green. 
The orange, black-capped Baltimore is seen. 
The broad, extended boughs still please him best; 
Beneath their bending skirts he hangs his nest. — Wilson. 
He is several years in getting his full plumage. 
Oxe of the most curious and handsome birds of this group is termed the Chested Oriole, 
on account of the sharp, pointed crest which rises from its head. 
It is a native of tropical America, and seems to be rather a familiar bird, often leaving the 
forests where it usually dwells, and making its home near the habitations of man. Whether 
in the vast woods of its native land, or whether in the cultivated grounds, it is always to be 
found in the loftiest trees, traversing their branches in search of food, and suspending its nest 
from the extremity of the slenderest twigs. It is a very active bird both on foot and in the 
air, one quality being needful for its movements among the boughs while getting berries, and 
the other for the chase of the various insects with which it varies its diet. 
The nest of the Crested Oriole is a very elegant structure, much larger than that of either 
of the preceding species, being sometimes not less than three feet in length. It is always hung 
from the very extremity of some delicate twig, so as to escape the marauding hand of the 
monkey, or the dreaded fangs of the snake ; and as a great number of these are generally 
found upon one tree, the combined effect, together with the busy scene of the parent birds 
continually going and returning from their homes, is remarkably fine. The shape of the nest 
is cylindrical, swelling into a somewhat spherical form at the bottom ; and it is found that 
both birds take an equal share of work in its construction. 
The Crested Oriole is very beautifully as well as curiously colored. The head, shoulders, 
breast, and abdomen are warm chocolate-brown, and the wings are dark green, changing 
