Chester A. Reed

“ A Phœbe is always associated, in my mind, with old bridges and bubbling brooks. Nearly every bridge which is at all adapted for the purpose has its Phœbe home beneath it, to which the same pair of birds will return year after year, sometimes building a new nest, sometimes repairing the old. They seem to be of a nervous temperament, for, as they sit upon their usual lookout perch, their tails are continually twitching as though in anticipation of the insects that are sure to pass sooner or later. ”

“ While to flower lovers this may appear to be the most beautiful species of the family, it is the most heartily detested weed with which the farmer has to contend. It is very prolific, and each individual plant strikes its roots deep into the ground, as though determined to defy extermination. The fully-opened flower clusters have an exquisite, lace-like appearance, while those half-opened are hollowed suggestively like a bird’s nest ”

“ Range.--North America east of the Plains and north to Nova Scotia and Manitoba; winters from New England southward.
White.
This handsome dweller among our fields and meadows is frequently heard giving his high, pleasing, flute-like whistle with its variations; his beautiful yellow breast with its black crescent is not so frequently seen in life, for they are usually quite shy birds. They artfully conceal their nests on the ground among the tall grass of meadows, arching them over with dead grass. ”

“ In the white phase, the plumage is entirely, or nearly, white, including the plumes. As usual, these egrets associate in large flocks, of their own kind or other small herons. Their food consists of small fish, frogs, lizards, insects and mice. They will stand motionless in shallow water, for a long time waiting for their prey, and woe to the creature that comes within striking distance of their spear-like bill. Their flight is strong and graceful as they make their way from their breeding places to their feeding grounds on the mud flats, left bare by the receding tide. ”

“ The female of this beautiful little Night-jar differs from the male only in having narrow buffy tips to the outer tail feathers instead of broad white ones. Like all the members of this family these birds are dusk fliers, remaining at rest on the ground in daylight. Their frosted gray plumage harmonizes so perfectly with their surroundings that it is almost impossible to see them. Their eggs are nearly immaculate, but usually show traces of the lavender blotches that mark others of the family. ”

“ Loons are strong fliers, but like the Grebes, because of their small wings they must get their first impetus from the water in order to rise; in case there is any wind blowing they also make use of this by starting their flight against it. They are very peculiar birds and the expression "crazy as a loon" is not a fanciful one, being formed from their early morning and evening antics when two or more of them will race over the top of the water, up and down the lake, all the while uttering their demoniacal laughter. They vie with the Grebes in diving and disappear at the flash of a gun. ”

“ Eastern United States, breeding from the Gulf coast north to southern New England and Minnesota.
This strange but handsome species is very common in underbrush and thickets in the south; they are usually shy and endeavor, with success, to keep out of sight, but their strange song and calls, consisting of various whistles and squawks mingled together, are often heard. Their nests are built in bushes or briars at low elevations, being made of grass, strips of bark and leaves, lined with finer grass; their eggs are white, sharply speckled and spotted with various shades of brown and lavender ”

“ A plant is a wonderful organism, yet how few of us realize it as we casually glance at the flowers growing by the wayside. We see a beautiful flower; we know that in the course of time it withers and fades away; and we know that the next year the plant grows up again, sends forth its buds, which at the proper time unfold their petals, and so the cycle continues year after year, while we give little thought to the change that occurs, the cause and its effect. ”

“ I do not take into consideration the death of birds from natural causes, such as old age and disease, for these should be counterbalanced by the natural increase.
There are parts that each one of us can play in lessening the unnatural dangers that lurk along a bird’s path in life. Individually, our efforts may amount to but little, perhaps the saving of the lives of two or three, or more, birds during the year, but collectively, our efforts will soon be felt in the bird-world. ”

“ The Screech Owl, or its sub-species, is found throughout the United States, and is one of the most abundant and best known of the family. They are not at all timid, in winter frequently being found in church towers, while on the outskirts of cities and in the country, they reside, at all seasons of the year, in orchards. They remain mated for life, and live in the same tree for years, if not too much disturbed by curious boys. Both adults and the four young are often found in the nest together, and they offer no resistance when they are removed by hand. ”

“ There are also some flowers, like the evening primrose, that are seen at their best after dusk, when the light-colored petals are widespread and a delicate perfume given off to attract the moths and sphinges that visit them.
It is evident that a flower secreting honey may be visited by unwelcome guests, ones that will accept of the nectar, but will make no useful return. Any insect with a shiny, smooth body whether winged or not, is of little use in fertilizing a plant, for even should it receive pollen, it will in all probability have fallen off before the next flower is visited. ”

“ A more northern bird than the last, breeding abundantly in Alaska, both on the coast and in the interior. In the southern limits of its breeding range, it nests in company with the Common Tern, its nests and eggs being indistinguishable from the latter. When their nesting grounds are approached, all the birds arise like a great white cloud, uttering their harsh, discordant "tearrr, tearrr," while now and then an individual, bolder than the rest, will swoop close by with an angry "crack." On the whole they are timid birds, keeping well out of reach. The nesting season is early in June. ”

“ A great number of books have been written for sportsmen and by sportsmen, most of them containing but a very few black and white illustrations of some of the species mentioned. As far as we know, AMERICAN GAME BIRDS is the only sportsman’s book illustrating nearly all of these birds in NATURAL COLORS. With it, the novice can identify any game bird he secures or sees, and the old-timer, as well, can see just what sportsmen in other sections of the country are shooting. The illustrations are excellent reproductions by the very best process from water-color paintings made directly from the birds. ”

“ These grouse have two color phases, the general tone of plumage being either reddish brown or gray, independent of age or sex of bird. These naturally wild, shy grouse are the kings of the eastern game birds, their wariness and speed with which they will dodge through the trees being the only reasons they have so long withstood the hunting to which they are subjected. During spring, the male struts often, tail expanded into a half circle, head thrown back to meet the upturned tail, and ruff spread so as to form a complete collar. They make a loud drumming by beating the air with their wings. ”

“ As in the animal world, so in the plant world; always a struggle for existence, the strong surviving and the weak falling by the wayside. The old adage that “In union there is strength” is amply proved by many of the composite flowers, such as the asters and goldenrods, whose stalks are not only capped with numerous flower-heads, but each flower-head is composed of hundreds of little perfect florets, so closely set together that even should an insect but crawl across the flower-head he will fertilize a number of them. ”

“ Ptarmigan are remarkable birds in that they are in an almost continual state of molting, nearly every month in the year showing them in different stages of plumage, ranging from the snow-white winter dress to the summer one in which reddish-brown prevails on Willow Ptarmigan and a black and gray barred effect predominates on the other species. Notice that they are feathered to the toes, in winter the feathers on the toes growing dense and hair-like, not only protecting the toes from the cold but making excellent snowshoes which enable them to walk with impunity over the lightest snow. ”

“ Unused chimneys of old dwellings make favorite roosting and nesting places for these smoke-colored birds. They originally dwelt in hollow trees until the advent of man furnished more convenient places, although we would scarcely consider the soot-lined brick surface as good as a clean hollow tree. Spines on the end of each tail feather enable them to hang to their upright walls, and to slowly hitch their way to the outer world. Throughout the day numbers of them are scouring the air for their fare of insects, but as night approaches, they return to the chimney. ”

“ Bob-whites are very scarce in New England; Prairie Hens are becoming scarce in parts of the west; the small Curlew is practically extinct, while the larger ones are rapidly going. In behalf of all bird lovers, we ask that you refrain from killing those species that you know are rare, and use moderation in the taking of all others. We also ask that you use any influence that may be yours to further laws prohibiting all traffic in birds. The man who makes his living shooting birds will make more, live longer and die happier tilling the soil than by killing God’s creatures. ”

“ We see in most flowers a thing of beauty; their real and, to them, most important function is to produce seeds to perpetuate the species.
The parts of a flower that are necessary to produce seeds are the pistil, with its stigma at the top and ovule at the base, and the stamens with their pollen-laden anthers. A flower that has these organs is known as a perfect flower; if, in addition, it has a corolla and calyx, or petals and sepals, it is known as a complete flower. ”

“ Their nests are hollows in the leaves under fallen trees, beside some stump or concealed among the small shoots at the base of a large tree. The bird sits very close, but when she does fly, goes with the familiar rumble and roar which always disconcerts the novice, the wind created by her sudden flight generally causing the leaves to settle in the nest and conceal the eggs. ”

“ Breast yellow, lores black, line over the eye and underparts white; no white on wings or tail.
Dry side hills and ravines covered with thick underbrush are the places to look for Chats. Usually if they are present they will make themselves heard long before you see them. They are one of the most odd birds both in action and song. They are mimics of the highest order and can make any kind of whistle or squawk, but all their vocal efforts seem to require a great deal of flirting of the tail and twisting of the head. ”

“ Eye, bill and feet red, like those of the last species, but the head is crested on the male, as well as the female, and a band across his breast is mixed rusty and black streaks. The female has not as brightly colored a head as the female of the American Merganser, and the throat is not pure white. They can be distinguished in any plumage, from the fact that the nostril is nearer the eye than it is the tip of the bill, while that of the last species is located midway between the eye and the tip of the bill. ”

“ During September and October we may find these blossoms fully expanded, delicate, vase-shaped creations with four spreading deeply fringed lobes bearing no resemblance in shape or form to any other American species. The color is a violet-blue, the color that is most attractive to bumblebees, and it is to these insects that the flower is indebted for the setting of its seed. The anthers mature before the stigma is developed so that self-fertilization is impossible. The flowers are wide open only during sunshine, furling in their peculiar twisted manner on cloudy days and at night. ”

“ Goatsuckers are long winged birds, with small bills, but with an extraordinarily large mouth, the opening of which extends beneath and beyond the eyes. They are chiefly dusk or night fliers, their food consisting of insects which they catch on the wing. Their plumage is mottled black, brownish and white, resembling the ground upon which they lay their eggs. ”

“ Male, black and white; female, brown and gray.
This species is often known as the White-winged Blackbird, not because it bears any resemblance to any of the Blackbirds, nor because any of the habits are the same, but simply because of its plumage. They are very gregarious and usually fly in flocks even in nesting time.
They seem to be very methodical and well trained; if one of a flock takes wing, the entire flock rises simultaneously and in a very compact body they fly until some leader chooses the next stopping place, when they as suddenly alight. ”

“ Largest and most powerful of our gulls. Adults in summer have the head, tail and underparts white, back slaty black, eyes and bill yellow, with a red spot near the tip of the lower mandible; feet flesh color; primaries tipped with white. In winter, the head is streaked with dusky. Young birds are mottled with dusky brown above, and streaked with the same below. These birds are very rapacious, and besides feeding upon refuse, fish and shellfish, devour, during the summer season, a great many eggs and young of other sea birds; this habit is common to nearly all the larger gulls. ”

“ Nature has a number of quite effective ways of preventing thefts of this kind, one of the most common ways being to provide the plant stem with bristly hairs, forming a very difficult barrier for any crawling insect to overcome; others have a tuft of hair at the very entrance to the honey cells which bar the way for unwelcome guests, but readily allow the bee to insert its tongue; still others are protected by recurved leaves or by sticky stems, or as in the toadflax by a two-lipped flower, which will open under the weight of a bumblebee, but is effectively closed to any lighter insect. ”

“ Often confused with the last species in this plumage, but is smaller, bill smaller and more slender, and the axillars, or feathers nearest the body, under the wings, are gray while those of the Black-bellied Plover are black. This species is now regarded as rare on the North Atlantic coast during migrations, while in the interior it is more abundant than the last species. They do not seem to be as suspicious as the Black-bellies, and a flock will often allow a close approach, even when they see you. They nest abundantly along the coast and islands of the Arctic Ocean. ”

“ It is an undisputed fact that a great many of our birds are becoming more scarce each year, while a few are, even now, on the verge of extinction. The decrease in numbers of a few species may be attributed chiefly to the elements, such as a long-continued period of cold weather or ice storms in the winter, and rainy weather during the nesting season; however, in one way or another, and often unwittingly, man is chiefly responsible for the diminution in numbers. ”

“ Legs feathered to the toes. Plumage blackish-brown, adults having the lengthened feathers on the nape, golden-brown, and the tail more or less mixed with white; leg feathers rusty. These large, handsome, well-built birds of prey are fairly abundant in thinly settled country west of the Miss., especially in mountains and foot-hills. They are very powerful birds and a single pair of them will rule the whole country in which they reside. They are very shy in the presence of man and will never attack a person or show fight unless wounded or surprised at their meals. ”

“ The bright golden-yellow flowers are quite fragrant; they open only in the sunshine and close tightly at night. They grow in few-flowered umbels at the end of the stem on slender peduncles from the axils of some of the leaves. After their flowering season little erect, pointed pods take the place of the flowers. This species is a very common herb or weed throughout our range. ”

“ These beautiful fiery red and crested songsters are one of the most attractive of our birds, and in their range, nest about habitations as freely as among the thickets and scrubby brush of wood or hillside. ”