George Miksch Sutton

“ His handsome plumage enlivens the stretches of dead cat-tails, and his tuneful, liquid song delights the ear. As he sings, he spreads his blazing wing-patches and fluffs out his glossy plumage. The males come north in a body before the females arrive.
The females set to work building the nests almost at once. If the weed-growth is low in the swamp, they build them but slightly above the water; those built by females which arrive later are higher. If nests are suspended upon growing cat-tail leaves or stalks, they are sometimes overturned by the unequal growth of the vegetation. ”

“ A flock of these plump-bodied birds sometimes sit in a tree-top, their feathers fluffed out. They catch insects like flycatchers. Sometimes they indulge in a queer little dance. In a cherry tree which is full of fruit, they sometimes pass tid-bits between them in a strangely deliberate, polite fashion. They are very fond of cedar berries, poke berries, and the fruits of the Virginia creeper, but the name “Cherry Bird” is well earned. Remember the crest, the upright carriage, the flocking tendency, and the yellow-tipped tail of this species. ”

“ While they give these sounds, the male birds inflate their necks and fluff out their feathers, as they strut and bow, and snap their bills.
The sitting mother bird depends greatly upon her remarkably protective coloration. Taken unawares, the hunting Bittern will stand erect with bill pointing skyward, realizing that its dull colors, its streaked breast, and its sharp bill all resemble cat-tail leaves. The eyes of a Bittern are so arranged that the bird can point its bill straight up yet at the same time look directly at us as we approach. Its golden-yellow eyes have a serpentine appearance. ”

“ At such a time the reddish brown band at the tip of the tail and the white belly, which flashes as the bird erratically turns, are good field-marks.
On its nesting-grounds the Snipe is a different creature. High overhead, in wide circles, the birds fly, giving forth strange windy hoots which they are said to produce by spreading widely the outermost feathers of the tail. When the performers come to earth they may perch on a wayside post, on a fence, or on a tree—an unheard-of feat for a Snipe at any other season. ”

“ Its rich red-brown rump and tail are sufficient to distinguish this bird from the other sparrows, but not always from the Hermit Thrush, a bird with a surprisingly similar color-pattern when seen from the rear or in flight. The thrush has a slenderer bill, of course, and has the habit of elevating the tail when it alights. Usually, the Fox Sparrow occurs in flocks; in spring it indulges itself in song—a rich, ringing melody, among the most impressive of our sparrow songs. ”

“ On warm evenings the males bleat in their favorite haunts, then, as darkness descends, mount on whistling wings higher and higher, until they are far above the earth. They then hurl themselves back and forth as they start pitching toward the earth, the while producing a twittering sound with their throats as they drop at considerable speed, to alight not far from the point at which they started. ”

“ As he walks or runs among the short grass, twittering in a companionable way, standing still for a moment to survey his surroundings, then wandering off again, little is noted to remind us of the glorious courtship song which this bird of the ground gives during early spring, and for which he should be as famous as the English Skylark. ”

“ As he flies, the white-tipped outer tail-feathers and secondaries show plainly; as he perches, his crest is prominent. But when the bird student essays to identify the Blue Jay from call-notes alone there may be trouble, for this bright creature not only has a considerable vocabulary of his own but also imitates other birds extremely well. He can reproduce the scream of a Red-shouldered Hawk so faithfully that small birds of the vicinity drop into silence for an instant. ”

“ For us, since the days of our forefathers, and for the Red Man who originally inhabited 31 Penn’s Woods, the V-shaped spring flocks of Canada Geese have heralded the breaking up of the winter, and, in the fall, the coming of the cold season. Canada Geese migrate both by day and night, but they are noticed at night more often than by day because in the comparative stillness of the dark hours their loud, musical bugling drifts down to us as we lie awake, thrilled at the sound. ”

“ A single Snow Bunting in flight might suggest to the bird student an albinistic sparrow of some sort, but a whole flock of the remarkably colored creatures, as they swing over a dead weed-field, can but bring the instantaneous thrill which a glimpse of such exotic creatures always brings. Snow Buntings are usually seen in flocks, often in company with Horned Larks or Tree Sparrows, their companions in the North Country, and they have a jovial twitter. ”

“ By far the greater number of species migrate to an extent. The phenomenon of bird-migration has caused many a student to wonder. How did such a tremendous annual movement originate? How do the birds endure their great flights across bodies of water?
The probability is that the migration of birds developed in past centuries as the food-supply in the tropics became insufficient for all the nesting birds which tried to bring forth their young there. Urged by the need for solitude and a good food-supply, certain birds pushed out from the ancestral range and established a new summer home. ”

“ Even at a distance the bright reddish coloration of the underparts of the adult Red-shoulder should serve to distinguish it. The bird student will do well to remember that the Red-shoulder and Red-tail customarily choose prominent perches from which to watch for prey, whereas the Cooper’s Hawk, Sharp-shin, and Goshawk almost never choose such lookout posts. A large Hawk seen on a dead stub in the open is almost certainly either a Red-shoulder or a Red-tail. The flying Red-shoulder circles more rapidly than does the Red-tail, and with a glass the dark, white-barred tail should be seen easily. ”

“ Beating its way along rapidly, it pauses at times to watch the grass where prey may hide, sometimes wheeling suddenly toward the ground as it captures a mouse or shrew. It may always be recognized by the white upper tail-coverts which show plainly in flight, a mark which our other hawks do not have.
Occasionally the Marsh Hawk circles high in air where the white patch on the back is not visible. At such times the long and somewhat pointed wings, black wing-tips, long tail, and white appearance of the male and the dull brown appearance of the female will distinguish the species. ”

“ Look for the buffy rump-patch of this slow-flying, graceful swallow, which gathers mud for its nest without alighting on the ground and whose conversational twitterings sound like the squeaks produced by rubbing a piece of wet rubber with the finger. In early spring and during later summer, several kinds of swallows will be found together in the migratory flocks. Cliff Swallows are easily driven from their nests by English Sparrows or Starlings; they will not use bird-boxes put out for them. ”

“ Here the nocturnal birds bore in the mud with their long bills, searching for food which they may grasp with the mobile tips of their mandibles. When disturbed they fly up rapidly, their wings whistling musically as they make off, somewhat erratically, through the undergrowth. ”

“ This neighborly winter bird visits the food-counter regularly and is very fond of suet. He has the habit of hiding food in the bark of trees. I once saw a Nuthatch thus hoarding sunflower seeds. At least a full hour he worked, hiding dozens of the little kernels. He was watched and followed by a pair of lazy Downy Woodpeckers who deliberately ate the seeds as fast as the Nuthatch could hide them. The Nuthatch, it appeared, has great faith in his ability to hide food where it cannot be found—so great a faith, in fact, that he did not properly guard his store. ”

“ Large flocks often descend to the fields where they feed upon grass or sprouting grain and where they walk about in a dignified fashion.
It is supposed that an old gander always leads the migration flocks. While this may not be the case, it is reasonable to assume that adult birds, with their experience and intelligence, should determine the movements of the flock. Canada Geese sometimes fly in a line, sometimes abreast, but the V-formation is characteristic.
The Greater Snow Goose (Chen hyperboreus nivalis) , a white bird with black wing-tips, sometimes flies across Pennsylvania. ”

“ Winter is an ideal time to begin bird-study, because there are no leaves and because the birds are few and not difficult to identify. If you learn the winter birds thoroughly, you will be ready for the rush of the spring as old favorites return and new friends appear.
Midsummer is often a disappointing season because birds are silent and in poor feather. At this time you will be able to study the plumages of the young birds, however, and you will find much of interest in watching the affairs of family life. Migrant shore-birds should be watched during late summer. ”

“ Mounting upward from the clods, he finally reaches a far height, where he pours out his melodious, tinkling music, minute after minute, sweeping about in wide circles, or steadily flying into the wind. Thirty or forty times he may give his song, then becoming tired of his performance, downward he drops to the earth in long, graceful sweeps to alight unconcernedly. ”

“ Protectively colored, he waits until he is almost trodden upon, then rises with a startling whir of wings, leaving the wayfarer thunderstruck. The female, as she incubates, is rarely seen, for she does not stir, and her back perfectly imitates her surroundings. ”

“ Adult male in spring: Entire plumage glossy blue-black; bill and feet black; eyes pale yellow. Adult female: Slate color, somewhat glossy above; wings and tail blackish. Adult male in winter: Black, all the feathers edged with buffy brown, the top of the head almost solid brownish. Young birds in their first winter plumage are chiefly responsible for the name of the bird. They are rusty brown, paler on head, richest on back, with slate-colored wings and tail, a dark line through the eye, and pale yellow eyes. ”

“ Adults: Center of crown, region at base of bill back to eye, and broad line down chin and throat, black; front of crown, sides of head, and rest of throat and breast, ashy gray, a tiny white spot back of eye; upper-parts olive-brown, the feathers with blackish centers, those of the back and scapulars narrowly but sharply edged with white; wings dark brown, the coverts somewhat lighter; belly and sides of under tail-coverts white; bill yellow; feet green; eyes brown. Immature birds are similar but lack all black on face and throat ”

“ The facial mask of the male is to be confused with no bird other than the rather rare Kentucky Warbler which is to be found on wooded hillsides, not in deep weeds along streams and pools. The Yellow-throat gives a flight-song, and also has a Red Squirrel-like, long-drawn-out series of chips, not often heard. If you make it a point to visit a marshy spot in late summer or early fall, you will almost certainly see these birds in the deep weeds, sedges, or cat-tails. ”

“ The strange, melancholy expression of the bird’s face, its peculiarly awkward, long legs, and its odd habit of bowing, hissing, and swaying back and forth, all make it an object of great curiosity.
The Barn Owl can see perfectly by day, though it is chiefly nocturnal. It preys upon rats, mice, and shrews principally, and is almost altogether beneficial in its food-habits. All Owls have the habit of throwing up wads of indigestible matter, such as the bones and fur of the mice they have eaten. ”

“ Today the tiny Ruby-throated Hummingbird rears his young in our woodlands, then returns to South America with the young birds. Our Yellow Warbler, Red-eyed Vireo, Purple Martin, Rose-breasted Grosbeak, Scarlet Tanager, and many others, all go to South America.
Food-conditions, no doubt, have something to do with migration movements. Birds are well clothed with feathers, to be sure, but many of them depend on an insect diet, such as would be difficult to secure during cold winters. Some of our birds actually do not migrate if a food-supply is available. ”

“ Nest.—The Cowbird builds no nest but lays its eggs in the nests of other, usually smaller, species, and does not incubate them nor care for the young in any way. The species most commonly thus parasitized in Pennsylvania are the Red-eyed Vireo, Yellow Warbler, Phœbe, Song and Field Sparrow, Ovenbird, Scarlet Tanager, and others. I have never found Cow-bird 98 eggs in a Red-winged Blackbird’s nest, and, as a rule, Red-wings chase Cowbirds away from their home swamp angrily whenever they appear. ”

“ In the winter, Grouse develop long lateral scales on their toes which function as snow-shoes. Their neat tracks in the snow lead from a roost under a branch to which dead leaves cling, and wander about the bushes and trees where the birds have been feeding on buds, twigs, and dried berries. Grouse are especially fond of aspen, birch, beech, and maple buds. They like wild-grape vines both for the food and the shelter which they afford. During summer, Grouse eat much insect food, as well as berries and leaves. They sometimes eat hemlock needles and leaves of mountain laurel. ”

“ Several days before they leave the burrow to learn angling for themselves, they scuttle about on their short feet, sometimes coming to the entrance for a moment to glimpse the world that is soon to be such 78 an unfolding of adventure for them. They rattle like their parents, and if a hand is thrust in among them, they pick savagely at the fingers—either in anger or with the belief that a larger, finer fish than parents ever caught has come to be swallowed. ”

“ Gracefully, the glossy birds sail about, calling to each other, capturing insects, and perching near or upon their nest. They have almost altogether given up nesting in hollow trees and prefer to use bird-boxes, it appears, though in such towns as Waynesburg, Ligonier, and Coudersport they nest in any cranny among the buildings which they can find. Martins are very fond of dragonflies; they have the interesting habit of bringing green leaves into the nest during summer, either as new lining for the nests, to make the young birds cooler, or for some other reason. ”

“ As he sings, his tail droops, but when he is bustling about on every-day business he is given to changing his attitude with the passing instants—now he is fluffy, now sleek; up goes his tail; he jumps; he flashes his wings, droops them and spreads his tail. ”

“ Adults: Top of head and neck blackish, base of feathers of nape white; cheeks and malar region whitish streaked with reddish brown; throat white, finely streaked with black; upperparts blue-gray, the tail marked with three or four blackish bands; underparts white, heavily barred with reddish brown save on middle of belly and under tail-coverts. Immature birds: Brown, not gray, plumage of the upperparts edged with rusty brown and underparts streaked, not barred, with dark brown. The eyes of adults are usually red; of immatures, yellow. The feet, which are long and slender, are always yellow. ”

“ The male in summer has the sides and front of head white; the rest 28 of the plumage is chiefly black, save the belly, which is white. Length: male, 21 inches; female, 16 inches.
Range in Pennsylvania.—A migrant from February 20 to April 10 and from November 1 to December 20, sometimes occurring in winter, and irregularly very abundant. Tremendous flocks have been noted at Conneaut Lake and at Lake Erie.
The Old Squaw is a handsome and noisy species and demands attention wherever it is found. It usually feeds in deep water, and therefore is found but rarely in smaller ponds or along streams. ”

“ Description.—Larger than an English Sparrow, with long, narrow, pointed wings; upperparts brownish gray, with a faint greenish gloss, more or less barred with black; an indistinct superciliary line of white; face and underparts white, spotted throughout with black, the largest spots on the sides and flanks; wings like back, the bases of the primaries and secondaries whitish, showing in flight; inner tail-feathers dark like back, outer ones lighter, about white, but never appearing, even in flight, as white as in the Solitary Sandpiper. ”

“ Here such birds as the Carolina Wren, Cardinal, Tufted Tit, and Red-bellied Woodpecker live. In much of Pennsylvania the Alleghenian Life-Zone occurs, where the Least Flycatcher, Wilson’s Thrush, Swamp Sparrow, and Rose-breasted Grosbeak are to be found in summer. Higher in the mountains is the Canadian Life-Zone; here the Junco, Hermit Thrush, Red-breasted Nuthatch, Wilson’s Snipe, and Northern Water Thrush nest. As you read this book, you will notice that many birds are to be found in northern or mountainous counties; others in southern or less mountainous counties, and so forth. ”

“ Near the nest of a pair of these birds located at McDonald Water Works, Washington County, there were no small birds—they had probably all been killed or driven out by the Sharp-shins.
Another very small member of this family, the Sparrow Hawk, is a bird of the open fields, with long, pointed wings and red-brown back. The Sharp-shin sometimes circles rapidly in the open but does not hover over its prey as does the Sparrow Hawk.
Cooper’s Hawk, Female
Sharp-shinned Hawk, Male
Young Sharp-shins, which are downy white, are fed upon small birds which are neatly plucked by the parent. ”

“ The male has the interesting custom of looping the loop during its season of courtship. At the nest the birds are very fierce in defending their young and swoop about the intruder, uttering loud, piercing, Flicker-like cries. ”

“ Adult male in summer: Bright scarlet, our brightest red bird, with black wings and tail, pale olive-green bill, and dark brown eyes. Adult female: Olive-green above, dull yellow below. Male in winter: olive-green, like the female, but with black wings and tail. Male birds in changing plumage, such as is found in late summer, are much blotched in appearance. ”

“ Swallows and hawks usually migrate by day, ducks and geese by both day and night. The Ohio, Delaware, and Susquehanna river valleys are important routes of migration. The shore of Lake Erie is a resting-ground for birds which have flown over this large body of water. In fall, at Presque Isle, the trees may be alive with birds which have just made the flight. The Atlantic Coast is an important route of migration for many waterbirds. Since Pennsylvania has no salt-water shore-line, we do not find some species which are to be found along the coast of New Jersey and Delaware. ”