THE BOBOLINK 
31 
birds and American Orioles, foremost among which 
is the Bobolink, or Reed-bird or Rice-bird, that bright, 
active little bird which comes to us in the spring in 
a beautiful coat of black and white, sings sweetly for 
a few short weeks, 
then changing his 
suit for one of dusky 
grey, commences a 
process of gormandi- 
zing which soon fits 
him for the gun of 
the sportsman and the 
epicure’s table. 
The following beau- 
tiful description of 
this bird is from the 
pen of Washington 
Irving : 
“ The happiest bird 
of our spring, and one 
that rivals the Euro- 
pean lark in my estimation, is the Boblincon or Bob- 
link, as he is called. He arrives at that choice 
period of our year which, in this latitude, answers 
to the description of the month of May, so often 
given by the poets. With us it begins about the 
middle of May, and lasts until nearly the middle of 
June. Earlier than this, winter is apt to return on 
its traces, and to blight the opening beauties of the 
year • later than this begin the parching and panting 
and dissolving heats of summer. But in this genial 
