86 
SINGING BIRDS. 
and bold whistle struck upon the ear of a Baltimore with great 
delight ; and from that moment his ordinary notes were laid 
aside for 'woit, 'wait, ten, and other phrases previously foreign 
to him for that season. I have likewise heard another individ- 
ual exactly imitating the soft and somewhat plaintive 77/j'zr, 
vit yiu of the same bird, and in the next breath the peiit, or 
call of Wilson’s Thrush ; also at times the earnest song of the 
Robin. Indeed his variations and imitations have sometimes 
led me to believe that T heard several new and melodious 
birds, and I was only undeceived when I beheld his brilliant 
livery. So various, in fact, are the individual phrases chanted 
by this restless and lively bird that it is scarcely possible to fix 
on any characteristic notes by which he may be recognized ; 
his singular, loud, and almost plaintive tone, and a fondness 
for harping long on the same string, are perhaps more peculiar 
than any particular syllables which he may be heard to utter. 
When alarmed or offended at being too closely watched or 
approached, both male and female utter an angry, rattling tsher 
tsh’r, or hiss, tsh' tsK tsh' 'tsh. 
The beautiful Baltimore bird is only one of the tribe of true 
Icteri, which, except the present and two following species, 
remain within the tropical regions, or only migrate to short 
distances in the rainy season. Ours wing their way even 
into Canada as far as the 55 th degree, and breed in every 
intermediate region to the table-land of Mexico. A yellow 
Brazilian species of the section of this genus, called cassicus, 
according to Waterton inhabits also Demerara, where, like our 
bird, he familiarly weaves his pendulous nest near the planter’s 
house, suspending it from the drooping branches of trees, and 
so low that it may be readily looked into even by the incu- 
rious. Omnivorous like the Starling, he feeds equally on insects, 
fruits, and seeds. He is called the Mocking Bird, and for hours 
together, in gratitude as it were for protection, he serenades 
the inhabitants with his imitative notes. His own song, though 
short, is sweet and melodious. But hearing perhaps the yelp- 
ing of the Toucan, he drops his native strain to imitate it, or 
place it in ridicule by contrast. Again, he gives the cackling 
