Rose-breasted Grosbeak
Male Female
The song of this bird is a bright, musical warble, resembling the carol of a Robin. Both sexes incubate the eggs, and the male may sometimes be heard singing softly or in a full-throated manner while at his domestic duties. These birds eat many destructive insect pests, including the much-dreaded Colorado potato beetle. The call-note may be written eek.
INDIGO BUNTING
Passerina cyanea (Linnæus)
Indigo Bunting
Female Male
Description.—Adult male in spring: Bright, glossy green-blue all over, purplish on head, somewhat dusky on wings and tail, and the belly sometimes marked with a few whitish feathers; bill and eyes black. Adult female: Grayish brown, lighter below, the lesser coverts and edge of wing and tail-feathers bluish; two obscure grayish wing-bars. Young birds: Like the females. Adult males in winter: Similar to those in spring but all feathers tipped widely with brown, giving an effect much as in the female. Length: 5½ inches.
Range in Pennsylvania.—A common migrant and summer resident from late April or early May to mid-September; sometimes very abundant in favorable localities.
Nest.—A rather firm, deep cup made of weed-stalks and plant fibers, placed a few feet from the ground in a raspberry or other low bush, usually at the edge of a woodland or in an open space among the trees. Eggs: 3 to 5, very pale blue or bluish white.
In the very top of a tree, along the hot midsummer roadside, sings the brilliant male during the lazy noon hours, his bright, rich music an accompaniment to the damp warmth which rises from the fields or to the dust that settles on the leaves near the road. Approach the singer carefully or he will fly before you get a good glimpse of him. The female is not easy to recognize unless she happens to be with or near her mate. She is very dull in color and is not often seen. Raspberry and blackberry thickets are the favorite haunt of this bird.
The larger Blue Grosbeak (Guiraca cærulea cærulea) should be looked for in southern counties. Records for this rare species are very desirable.
The Dickcissel or Black-throated Bunting (Spiza americana) is a very local summer resident which should be looked for in open fields. It is English Sparrow-like in appearance, but has a yellow breast. Its song may be written Dick, dick, chic, chic, chic.