of New York City), pheasant, blue jay, redpolls, crossbills, pine and evening grosbeaks.

Out on the open wind-swept fields one may regularly look for horned larks and snow buntings feeding on the weeds that project above the snow. They are easily distinguished by the large amount of white in the plumage of the bunting, and the curious black markings about the face of the lark. With them is associated occasionally the Lapland longspur, a sparrow-like bird from the Northwest somewhat resembling the house sparrow, but with a buffy ring about the neck which widens on the nape.

In the woodlands one can find the same birds that frequent the feeding stations, and usually a number of others that less often come so close to human habitations. Of the birds of prey, one may see the sharpshinned, Cooper's, red-shouldered, red-tailed hawks, and the goshawks, and, more frequently still, the little sparrow hawk, and the screech, greathorned, barred, long-eared, short-eared, and occasionally saw-whet and snowy owls. In the orchards or along roadsides one may espy on some conspicuous perch a northern shrike, a bird about the size of a robin but light gray in color with black wings and tail marked with white and a black line through the eye; and in the woods or along the rocky streams, crawling about fallen logs or running under brush piles, one may see the curious little dark brown winter wren.

Added to all these there are the crow and the ruffed grouse, or partridge, and the chance of seeing some hardy members of the summer birds, so that even the most experienced bird student always takes to the field a feeling of expectancy and joy in the uncertainty of it all. The number of species. that it is possible to see somewhere in New York State and at some time during the winter would be over one hundred, but one rarely sees more than twenty-five different kinds during a day's tramp except in the most favored situations; and the number is usually much less.

ROBIN

Size: The robin is used as one of the standards for comparison. It is about ten inches long.

General color: Above, grayish slate; under parts, except middle of lower belly, reddish or rusty.

Icy drifts still fill the shaded fence rows, and the chill north wind still speaks of snow and winter. Three times the ice has stilled the noisy frogs, three times the whitened marsh has shown brown by noon, and now by the laws of the sages spring should be here. A peeper chirps in a neighboring pond; a chickadee gives his phoebe note; a nuthatch rolls his springtime call; and there in the orchard on a topmost branch appears the robin. "Good luck," they say, "to see him first on highest branch."

Good luck to see him anywhere! Never so rich am I as after seeing the first robin; then home with the glad tidings! "The robin has come and spring is here!" Watch him as he flies to the sun-warmed spot where perchance an early worm may be found. How brilliant is his chestnut breast, how green the grass, how soft the air! We overlook the stubborn drifts, we forget the icy crystals fringing yonder pond. All is changed, and the robin has changed it.

Through the long winter he has been with flocks of his fellows in the sunny southland, feeding on berries of mistletoe and holly, and now he is back once more with an appetite

for grubs and worms. Occasionally he passes the winter in our chill northland, if he can find a sheltered spot with berries of cedar, grape, or mountain ash; but usually he leaves us in October for the land of plenty. With the first signs of spring, however, back he flies, the harbinger of all the wealth to come. Were he less common, he would no doubt be thought by all a kingly bird, the pride of the whole thrush family. Let him hide in distant forests and reveal himself to a lucky few only, and there would be no bird that could excel his beauty, his dignity, or his song. Unfortunately for his reputation, but happily for mankind, he is one of our most abundant birds and is most content about our dooryards. He and Chanticleer announce the day. "Cheer up, cheer up, cheerily, cheerily, cheerily," he sings; and one wakes with a smile. How much easier to start the day right when this is our morning summons! The male robins come first in the spring and await the arrival of their mates. Frequently they do not sing for many days, or even weeks, after arriving, but when the females come in late March or early April they commence their morning and evening choruses. Unlike many brightly colored birds, the males and the females are frequently alike in coloration, the duller colors of some being due more to youth than to sex.

After mating takes place, both birds join in building the nest, which is placed in a crotch on a horizontal limb or on some projecting ledge about our dwellings. Frequently the site is retained year after year.

The nest is a rather bulky structure, but a marvel of symmetry in the plasterer's art. An outer layer of straw, rags, and paper is neatly hollowed and filled with wet mud. Bill, feet, and breast are used until a perfect bowl is formed. This is lined with finer grasses until the home is complete. Three to five blue eggs are laid, which both birds take turns in incubating.

Like the young of all our song birds, the robins when first hatched are naked and blind, and it is two weeks before they are fully feathered and able to leave the nest. At this time they differ somewhat in color from their parents, for their breasts are much paler and are covered with

large, round, dark spots. In this plumage they are more like other thrushes and show their family characteristics much more plainly than when fully grown.

After the young are able to care for themselves, the parent birds usually start a second brood. It is now that they begin to gain a rather unfortunate reputation because of their fondness for fruit. It has been found, however, that by planting mulberries or some of the native fruits it is often possible to attract the robins from cultivated cherries and berries, and thus protect the fruit in a way that is more satisfactory than by killing the birds. It is doubtless true, however, that in some fruit districts where the natural food supply has been replaced by the much more dependable cultivated fruits, the robins have increased unduly and now do considerable damage; but killing should never be resorted to until competent scientific investigation has been made.

PHOTOGRAPH BY A. A. ALLEN

SIZE

BOBOLINK

Size: Smaller than a robin, larger than a sparrow.

General color: Above, black, marked with patches of white and buff; below, black, unmarked. The female is sparrow-like, yellowish brown streaked with darker brown.

Distinctive features: The general color, black with white markings on the upper parts, will distinguish the male.

We usually think of the blackbirds as being rather somber, unmusical birds, but the bobolink is an exception. Although a member of the blackbird family, his beautiful song and striking plumage make him a favorite with almost every one who enjoys the open fields.

During fall and winter the bobolinks, dressed in modest traveling attire, sun themselves on the plains of Brazil, but the first week of May they return in a fresh spring garb of black and white. Unlike most birds they are dark below and light above, the entire under parts of the male being jet black while the shoulders and the lower back are white. The nape is of light buff, and adds to the white appearance of the bird as he glides gracefully over the daisy field, singing his rollicking song as he goes. The female has sparrow-like plumage, streaked above and plain yellowish brown beneath. The immature birds, and likewise the males in the fall, have the same brown coloration.

PHOTOGRAPH BY A. A. ALLEN

NATURAL SIZE

The nest of the bobolink challenges the most experienced bird student, for it is extremely difficult to find. It is placed in a slight depression beneath a tussock in the meadow or at the edge of a grassy marsh. It is made of grasses and occasionally contains a few leaves, but it is so well hidden and so resembles the surrounding vegetation that a long search is often

necessary even though the bird may be flushed almost from under one's feet. The three to six eggs vary somewhat in size and markings, but are gray in ground color dotted with brown spots of irregular shapes.

From their habit in the fall of congregat ng in large flocks in the marshes, the bobolinks have acquired the name of reedbirds, and in the South, where they are accused of damaging rice fields, they are called ricebirds. It was formerly the practice in the Southern States to net these beautiful birds for the market, but federal legislation has stopped this wanton destruction.

One never knows joy and happiness un-
til he has the power to entertain himself.

ALICE GERTRUDE MCCLOSKEY