COMMON l!IRDS: SKCONI) SERIES. 
13 
acquainted with the Warbling Vireo. His colors harmonize so 
well with his surroundings that only those who are attracted by 
his notes are aware of his presence. In New England this Vireo 
arrives in the first few days of May, and from that time on, except 
for an interval in August, may be heard singing at nearly every 
hour of the day till his departure in the middle of September. 
( The song consists of a short series of warbled notes, sweet and 
musical, very attractive to those who know it, but not at all striking. 
The bird often prefaces the song with a curious squeaking sound, 
and both sexes have a scolding note very similar to the Catbird’s 
mew. The nest is a neat cup hung to a twig, generally high in the 
tree. Both sexes take turns in brooding, and the male often sings 
on the nest. The eggs are four or five, laid early in June, white 
with a few dark spots at the large end. The food consists of 
insects caught on the foliage of the trees. Most of them are in- 
jurious caterpillars, and the bird’s service in keeping the foliage 
from destruction is incalculable. 
Yellow-throated Vireo. 11. 
[vireo flavifrons.] 
The Yellow-throated Vireo, like its cousin the Warbling Vireo, 
frequents either the street and dooryard trees or groves. It also 
arrives in the first week of May, and sings up to the time of its 
departure, in the middle of September. Its fearlessness and 
affection, and its loud, cheerful song, endear this bird to any close 
observer of its ways. The nest is built with the skill and taste 
which characterizes the architecture of the whole Vireo family. 
Both sexes share in the construction and in the subsequent labors 
of incubation and feeding. The eggs are four, white with dark spots 
at the larger end. The young are fed with caterpillars, which the 
parents find on the foliage of the neighboring trees. The female 
often shows great confidence in man, and has even allowed herself 
to be fed on the nest. The male is fearless in the defence of the 
