COMMON BIRDS : SECOND SERIES. 
1 I 
where they winter. In May the Grosbeak visits the blossoming 
fruit-trees, snipping off the petals and the undeveloped fruit. 
Suspicion has therefore fallen on him, but it is' now believed by 
the best authorities that no direct injury can be traced to his 
activity, while undoubted good results from his attacks on the 
potato-beetle. 
Indigo Bunting, or Indigo-bird, 24. 
[PASSERINA CYANEA.] 
The Indigo-bird is one of the bright-colored birds which sug¬ 
gest the tropics, and which impress beginners in bird study as rare 
and wonderful. The Indigo-bird is, in fact, common in all but the 
heavily-wooded parts of the country, particularly along the wilder 
country roads, where, from some tree-top or telegraph wire, a con¬ 
stant succession of bright-colored males pour out their simple but 
pleasing song. The female is as fond of retirement as her mate is 
of display. Her brown colors are seldom seen, unless the bushes 
where her nest is hung be disturbed. Then, with nervous move¬ 
ments of the tail, and a soft tsup of alarm, she moves restlessly 
about till joined by her brilliant partner. The nest is neatly built 
of stalks and grasses, lined with soft materials, and placed in a 
fork not far from the ground. The four eggs are white and 
unmarked. The Indigo-bird is a rather late comer in spring. It 
is often the middle of May before the bulk of the species return 
to their favorite breeding places. The male is a persistent singer, 
and continues his song well into July, even in the heat of noonday. 
In August the bright feathers are moulted, and the males, now 
silent, become as brown as the females. Only on the wings and 
tail do they retain a suggestion of blue. The whole family now 
haunt the weedy patches and evergreen fields, and live largely on 
seeds. By the end of September they have left New England, and 
they continue their journey southward till they pass into tropical 
America. 
