Notes

June Fourth

The eave swallow lacks the forked tail, and the rump is cinnamon-buff. Usually the female builds her globular shaped mud nest under the eaves of an unpainted barn. Hundreds of mud pellets are neatly welded together and an opening is left in the front. As these swallows also build against cliffs, they are known as cliff swallows in some localities.

June Fifth

The nesting season is now at its height, and you will soon see young birds about the grounds. The old birds may be away looking for food. Let us remember that it is better to let Nature work out her own problems. Instead of catching the birdlings and forcing them to eat unnatural food (only to find them dead a few hours later), put them back into the nest when it is possible, or if they are strong enough, toss them into the air and let them flutter to the branches of a tree beyond the reach of cats.

June Sixth

This is about the time that turtles hunt for a sandy bank in which to make a depression where they may deposit their eggs—that look so much like ping-pong balls. The eggs are covered with sand and left for the sun to hatch. The young dig through the shallow covering and take to the water.

Notes

June Seventh

If you wish to see one of the most gorgeous of wood birds, the scarlet tanager, you must find him now, for, after the nesting season, he loses his black wings and tail and bright red dress, and dons the sober green hue of his mate. You will find him living in the maple groves, and the heavy forests of maple, oak, beech, and chestnut. His song, though not so loud as either, resembles both that of the robin and the rose-breasted grosbeak.

June Eighth

In the low-lying meadows, and in the marshes, the towering stems of the blue flag, or blue iris, have already blossomed. Nature has so constructed this handsome flower, that were it not for the visits of bees, and other insects, its seeds would remain unfertilized.

June Ninth

The orchard oriole is far from common north of the States parallel with southern New York. It migrates to Central America in winter, as does its cousin, the Baltimore oriole, who is named for Lord Baltimore. It lives in orchards, and you should look in apple and pear trees for its graceful pendent nest, built of the stems and blades of grass neatly woven together, like the nest of a weaver bird.

Notes

June Tenth

When by pure strategy you have outwitted a pair of bobolinks, and have succeeded in finding their nest, you have indeed achieved a triumph. To be successful, take your field-glasses, and secrete yourself near a meadow where you can watch a pair of bobolinks without being seen. Wait until one or both birds have made repeated trips to a certain spot, then with eyes riveted on the place, hurry forward, and as the bird rises, drop your hat on the spot and search carefully about it until the nest is found.

June Eleventh

The robin, song sparrow, vesper sparrow, chipping sparrow, phoebe, and house wren by this time have their first fledglings out of the nest. They usually raise two, and sometimes three broods in a season. While the father bird is busy caring for the youngsters, the mother is building another nest or laying a second set of eggs.

June Twelfth

In damp low-lying fields at this season, beds of bog cotton decorate the landscape. Its silken tassels sway gracefully in the breeze, and at a distance one could easily mistake them for true flowers.

Notes

June Thirteenth

Although the meadow lark and the flicker are about the same size, and each has a black patch on its breast, they need never be confused. The flight, as well as the difference in color, should help in their identification. The flicker's flight is undulating; while the meadow lark flies steadily, and the wings move rapidly between short periods of sailing. Again, the meadow lark's outer tail feathers are white, while the flicker's rump is white, both of which can be seen when the birds fly.

June Fourteenth

Visit the pool or waterway where you discovered the toad's eggs and you will find that they have hatched. The little black polliwogs, or tadpoles, have eaten their way out of the gelatine prison and are now schooled at the edge of the water. They subsist upon the decaying vegetation and minute animal life.

June Fifteenth

Our lawns are now the feeding ground of the first brood of young robins, great overgrown, gawky, mottle-breasted children, nearly as large as their parents. What a ludicrous sight it is to see them following their mother about, flapping their wings, opening their mouths, and begging for food every time she approaches them.

Notes

June Sixteenth

Leopard frogs and tiger frogs are often found in the tall grass a mile or so from water. Food is abundant and more easily caught in such places than along the streams. By the waterways the frog waits patiently for insects to pass, then springs at one with open mouth and, whether successful or not, he falls back into the water, swims ashore, and awaits another morsel.

June Seventeenth

A family of six young belted kingfishers perching on the edge of a bank, preparatory to taking their first flight, is a laughable sight indeed. Their immense helmet-like crests, their short legs, and their steel blue backs, give them a "cocky" appearance, and remind one of a squad of policemen on dress parade.

June Eighteenth

If the bird observer upon his first birding trip could be introduced to the song of a winter wren, there is scarcely a doubt that he would be a bird enthusiast from that minute. Mrs. Florence Merriam Bailey has come nearest to describing its song; "Full of trills, runs, and grace notes, it was a tinkling, rippling roundelay."

Notes

June Nineteenth

Throughout the mountainous region of the eastern States, the mountain laurel (spoonwood, broad-leafed kalmia, or calico bush) is in full blossom. It is a beautiful, sweet-scented, flowering shrub, and the bushes are ruthlessly destroyed by those who have no regard for Nature's future beauty.

June Twentieth

The habits of wasps and bees differ widely. Both orders are very intelligent. Wild bees live in hollow trees and make their cells of wax. At first they feed their young on "bee bread," which is made from the pollen of flowers, and afterward on honey. Wasps subsist on the juices of fruits, and insects; but they will eat meat. They make their homes in burrows in the ground, or in wood, or they construct nests of paper or mud.

June Twenty-first

The Maryland yellow-throat is more like a wren than a warbler, but it belongs to the warbler family. As you pass a thicket or a swamp, he shouts "This way sir, this way sir, this way sir;" or "Witchety, witchety, witchety;" and you might watch for hours without seeing him. But by placing the back of your hand against your lips, and making a low squeaking noise, you are likely to bring him to the top of a reed or bush.

Notes

June Twenty-second

It is quite easy to tell the difference between butterflies and moths. Remember, first of all, that butterflies are sunlight loving insects, while moths stir about only on cloudy days, or after dark. Butterflies, when at rest, hold their wings together over their backs; moths carry them open and parallel with the body. Again, the antennÆ, or "feelers," of butterflies are quite club-like in shape, while the "feelers" of moths inhabiting the United States and Canada resemble tiny feathers.

June Twenty-third

If you are so fortunate as to have a pair of catbirds nesting in a small tree or a bush near your house, you have learned that the male is an accomplished songster. Have you ever noticed the father bird, when perched where he can overlook the nest, gently quivering his wings as though delighted at the thought of a nest full of little ones? After the eggs have hatched, these periods of delight are more frequent.

June Twenty-fourth

The bracket fungi that are attached to the trunks of forest and shade trees live to an old age. Some have been found over seventy-five years old. They are the fruit of the fungous growth that is living on and destroying the tissues of the tree. The puff-balls are edible fungi before they have dried.

Notes

June Twenty-fifth

Some one has rightly called young Baltimore orioles the "cry-babies of the bird world." The approach of their mother with food is the sign for a general outcry, and even during her absence, they whimper softly, like disconsolate children. For the next ten days you may hear them in the shade-trees about our streets, particularly after a rain.

June Twenty-sixth

The long-billed marsh wren is found in tall, rank vegetation bordering rivers and lakes, and in the marshes at tide water. It nests in colonies in the rushes, and the male will build several other nests near the one his mate occupies. "While singing it is usually seen clinging to the side of some tall swaying reed, with its tail bent forward so far as almost to touch its head." (Chapman.)

June Twenty-seventh

The kingbird, because of its pugnacity, is considered a ruler of other birds, although it might rightly be called a watchman and protector of the feathered world. It is a sober colored bird, save for the concealed patch of orange on the crown of the head. It is always the first bird to detect the presence of a feathered enemy. With loud, defiant cries it sallies forth to attack, and is not content until it has driven the intruder beyond range.

Notes

June Twenty-eighth

The spittle insect, or spittle bug, not a snake, frog, or grasshopper, is responsible for that bit of froth found on the stems of weeds and grasses. Push away the foam, and you will find a small, helpless insect apparently half-drowned. The liquid is a secretion from the body, whipped into froth by the creature's struggles. These are the larvÆ of the insects which, when full grown, fly up before you in myriads as you walk through the fields.

June Twenty-ninth

The swallows are noted for their strong and graceful flight. Watch one, as he sails gracefully through the air, now swerving to the right, now to the left, and then dipping down to take a drink or to pick an insect from the water, scarcely making a ripple. The barn and eave swallows feed their young in mid air. It would appear that they are fighting, when the food is being passed from the old bird to the youngster.

June Thirtieth

A common bird along the country roads is the indigo bunting, or indigo bird. He perches on a wire, or on the topmost limb of a tall bush or tree, and sings a song quite sparrow-like in quality. As you approach, he drops gracefully into the foliage. His nest probably contains young birds.

Notes

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