Conspicuously Black 
the South. One day he asked an old colored man what these 
squashes were for. 
“Why, deh is martins’ boxes,” said Uncle Remus. “No 
danger of hawks carryin’ off de chickens so long as de martins 
am around.” 
The Indians, too, have always had a special liking for this 
bird. They often lined a hollowed-out gourd with bits of bark 
and fastened it in the crotch of their tent poles to invite its friend- 
ship. The Mohegan Indians have called it “the bird that never 
rests” — a name better suited to the tireless barn swallow, Dr. 
Abbott thinks. 
Wasps, beetles, and all manner of injurious garden insects 
constitute its diet — another reason for its universal popularity. 
It is simple enough to distinguish the martins from the other 
swallows by their larger size and iridescent dark coat, not to 
mention their song, which is very soft and sweet, like musical 
laughter, rippling up through the throat. 
Cowbird 
(Molotbrus ater) Blackbird family 
Called also: BROWN-HEADED ORIOLE; COW-PEN BIRD; 
COW BLACKBIRD ; COW BUNTING 
Length — 7 to 8 inches. About one-fifth smaller than the robin. 
Male — Iridescent black, with head, neck, and breast glistening 
brown. Bill dark brown, feet brownish. 
Female — Dull grayish-brown above, a shade lighter below, and 
streaked with paler shades of brown. 
Range — United States, from coast to coast. North into British 
America, south into Mexico. 
Migrations — March. November. Common summer resident. 
The cowbird takes its name from its habit of walking about 
among the cattle in the pasture, picking up the small insects 
which the cattle disturb in their grazing. The bird may often 
be seen within a foot or two of the nose of a cow or heifer, walk- 
ing briskly about li-ke a miniature hen, intently watching for its 
insect prey. 
Its marital and domestic character is thoroughly bad. 
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