BIRDS—THEIR MIGRATIONS AND SOJOURNINGS. 
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BIRDS—THEIR MIGRATIONS AND 
SOJOURNINGS. ' ! 
O BSERVING birds with reference to this 
subject, we shall find that they divide 
themselves naturally into four kinds:— First, 
Those which remain with us throughout the 
whole year; Second, Those which stay during 
summer only; Third, Those which remain dur¬ 
ing winter only; and, Fourth, Those which are 
but transient visitors, passing and repassing be¬ 
tween their winter resorts farther south and 
their breeding-places farther north. 
First to be mentioned are our proper resident 
birds, which bravely abide with us throughout 
the year, and enliven our seven months of sober 
earth, leafless trees, and cirrhus cloud. These 
are the partridge, quail, blue-jay, woodpecker, 
hen-hawk, owl, and crow. They are among 
the wildest of our birds, the shyest of man al¬ 
though seeing him most. They make no regu¬ 
lar migrations at certain seasons, but, unless dis¬ 
turbed, will live out their life close to their favorite 
haunts, realizing doubtless, in many instances, 
the fancy of Wordsworth in “Hart Leap Well.” 
An examination of their wings will readily 
show how unfitted are most of the species for 
extended flights. Those of the quail and par¬ 
tridge are very small—mere flippers—and their 
flying, which is a kind of flutter, serves admira¬ 
bly to launch the bird suddenly upon the wing 
and to bring it from the start into rapid motion ; 
but it is very unlike the steady sweep of the 
“ sail-broad vans” which sustain the wild-goose 
for so many hours in the high air. It is a com¬ 
mon belief that the partridge can fly but a single 
breath at once; and it is a fact that he does not 
continue in the air longer than the loon ahd 
other divers remain under water, and that num¬ 
bers will accumulate along the banks of narrow 
rivers, unwilling to trust themselves to cross. 
Xenophon informs us that the soldiers of Cy¬ 
rus’s expedition caught bustards in the open 
Arabian plain; “for they flew but a short dis¬ 
tance like partridges, and soon tired;” and, under 
the circumstances, the assertion respecting either 
bird is not improbable. 
These birds seem to be a kind of connecting 
link between those whose wings only assist their 
legs, and those whose wings entirely sustain 
them in the air; for they are swift runners, and 
both begin and end their short flight with a run. 
Fifty years ago the partridge, when started by 
the dog, merely flew up into the nearest tree 
like the wild turkey, and “treeing” was the 
technical term for the use of the pointer or set¬ 
ter. But from having been so much hunted and 
shot at his habits in this respect have changed. 
He now springs up suddenly and steers in all 
haste to some covert, making the woods resound 
with the whirring of his small but compact pin¬ 
ions. But when his flight is voluntary it is slow¬ 
er and without the noise. I was once watching 
a flock of pigeons when a large bird passed into 
the tree as quietly and silently as a bird of prey, 
but when shot it proved to be a partridge. 
Vol. XXXII.— No. 188 .—Q 
Woodpeckers are also poor flyers, reaching 
one tree from another by leaps through the air 
rather than by flying, much in the manner of 
flying squirrels, and using the tail as well as 
the wings. But they are splendid climbers, 
not merely hopping about among the branches 
like most birds, but running down the trunks 
head-foremost like cats. The blue-jay has 
much the same habit, and is by no means a fa¬ 
mous flyer. The owl also, from the looseness 
of his plumage, flies silently, as his business re¬ 
quires, but yet heavily. The wing, to be best 
suited for long flights, must have both strength 
and compactness of plumage. That of the owl 
has the one, that of the partridge the other, 
whirring as it cuts the air; that of the wild- 
goose both. The remaining birds of the first 
class make some irregular migrations, as will 
appear. 
Next are the well-known species, which pass 
the breeding season of five months in our lati¬ 
tude—that of the State of New York. Not fol¬ 
lowing any of the classifications yet made, which 
are in a great degree artificial, we shall find that 
they present about forty varieties. 
Of these the chip-sparrow, bobolink, lark, 
chewink, woodcock, plover, killdeer, tipup, whip- 
poor-will, night-hawk, and meadow-hawk build 
upon the ground. The red-wing, yellow-bird, 
wood-thrush, cat-bird, small blue crane, and 
sparrow build upon bushes. The barn, chim¬ 
ney, and eave swallows build where their name 
would indicate. The bank-swallow and king¬ 
fisher build in holes which they dig in the banks 
of streams. The phosbe has her nest under 
open buildings, the wren and martin in boxes 
made and provided for them; the woodpeck¬ 
er, bluebird, sparrow-hawk, pigeon-hawk, and 
wood-duck in holes and hollows of trees; and, 
finally, the robin, dove, oriole, humming-bird, 
crow, blackbird, king-bird, eagle-cuckoo, shrike, 
pigeon-crane, indigo-bird, red-bird, night-heron, 
osprey, and wax-wing upon the branches. To 
these must be added the cow-bunting or black¬ 
bird, which lays its eggs in other birds’ nests 
and allows them to rear its young. It is a com¬ 
mon notion that the cuckoo does the same; but 
I have found the American ouckoo sitting upon 
eggs like other birds, and confirmed the fact by 
repeated and careful observations. Of all the 
inland birds of New England and New York 
that is, indeed, a rara avis which is not includ¬ 
ed in the above. Even a great forest like the 
Adirondac gives n<^ additions to this class, for 
they are birds of civilization, found only where 
there are groves, gardens, fruits, plowed fields, 
and buildings; in short, man and his works. 
The third class is made up of a few species 
which breed to the northward, passing the win¬ 
ter with us only by way of southern sojourn. 
They are the snow-birds, some species of the 
owl, and perhaps some of the woodpeckers. 
The fourth and last division consists of those 
which breed in Arctic regions and visit us only 
in the way of migration. The species are com¬ 
paratively few, but the number of individuals is 
