. The birds about us . imals, theymay devour. Dr. Coues says of the two species found in theUnited States,— Matching the bravest of the brave among birds of prey in deedsof daring, and no less relentless than reckless, the shrilce com-pels that sort of deference, not unmixed with indignation, we areaccustomed to accord to creatures of seeming insignificance, whoseexploits demand much strength, great spirit, and insatiate love ofcarnage. We cannot be indifferent to the marauder who takes hisown wherever he finds it,—a feudal baron, who holds his own withundisputed sway,—an ogre whose victims ar
. The birds about us . imals, theymay devour. Dr. Coues says of the two species found in theUnited States,— Matching the bravest of the brave among birds of prey in deedsof daring, and no less relentless than reckless, the shrilce com-pels that sort of deference, not unmixed with indignation, we areaccustomed to accord to creatures of seeming insignificance, whoseexploits demand much strength, great spirit, and insatiate love ofcarnage. We cannot be indifferent to the marauder who takes hisown wherever he finds it,—a feudal baron, who holds his own withundisputed sway,—an ogre whose victims are so many more thanhe can eat that he actually keeps a private graveyard for thebalance. There are two of these shrikes: the Loggerheadcomes in April to the Middle States, and northward, and remains allsummer, al-though notequally distrib-uted ; and inNovember theGreat NorthernShrike comesdown and staysuntil April, sowe are never without one or the other of them. Didthey not kill small birds we would have no com-. Shrike. The Perching Birds. 75 plaint against them, and as it is, this is quite unrea-sonable, for small birds will kill each other ratherthan be incommoded, and a state of perpetual war-fare is only avoided because of lack of weapons andstrength. The ordinary utterances of the shrike are harshand thoroughly disagreeable, fitting with the generalcharacter of the bird, but it has one faculty thatshows the bird has a pretty high degree of intelli-gence, that of imitating the cries of birds in distress,and when, responsive to this, a number are gatheredtogether, to choose a victim. This is a degree ofcunning that always excites my admiration. Sandwiched between the shrikes and the cedar-bird—and what a difference there is between them ! —is a far southwestern and Mexican bird to which has given the name of Crested Shining BlackWhite-winged Flysnapper. I saw this bird in July,1890, near Bisbee, Arizona, and the brief glancesthat I had made me think of t
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Keywords: ., bookcentury1800, bookdecade1890, booksubjectbirds, bookyear1895
