Orchard Oriole 
145 
mowing-machine pass over their nests if he can 
but locate them. By the time the hay is ready 
for cutting in June, the active meadowlark 
babies are usually running about through grassy 
run-ways, but eggs of the second brood too 
frequently, alas! meet a tragic end. 
ORCHARD ORIOLE 
Fortunately many other birds besides this 
oriole prefer to live in orchards ; otherwise 
think how many worm-eaten apples there 
would be! He usually has the kingbird for 
company, and, strange to say, keeps on friendly 
terms with that rather exclusive fellow; also 
the robin, the bluebird, the cedar wax wing and 
several other feathered neighbours who show 
a preference for fruit trees when it is time to 
nest. You may know the orchard oriole’s 
cradle by its excellent weaving. It is not a 
deep, swinging pouch, like the Baltimore oriole’s, 
but a well-rounded cup, more like a vireo’s, 
formed of grasses of nearly even length and 
width, cut green and woven with far more skill 
and precision than a basket made by a boy or a 
girl is apt to be. Look for it near the end of 
a limb, ten to twenty feet up. It is by no 
means easily seen when the green, grassy cup 
matches the colour of the leaves. 
The mother oriole is so harmoniously dressed 
