New-York tribune., 1920-12-26
sr1ps or IA p ATA Ry r. Hue
son Published by e P. Dutton Co SIS


"A South American bird HE Is
presented IL these two vol
umes Mr. Hudson CON pines in
sr. measure the gifts OF the poet and
- the ccientist The enaracterIs-
sites Of the species which he describes
ara noted with the cars and accurac-
Il trained naturalist. AT the same
;ne ne sets down t,s observations with
r.msrkahle warmth and color ard liter
,rv ar. Take, for example, TIE follow
nc account OF 8 csrancho's daring
achievement:
A Battle in the Air
aWhile out riding one day "a carancAo
sev past me, attended BY about thirty
savings, combined 10 hunt him from
4bs,r ground. FOR il was near the
breeding season, when Their Jee Gus.
rsscinle temper is IT ost excited. All
4. once just as lspwirg swept close
~ ard then passed on before it, the
hawk onickened its fight in the most
uonderful manner and was seer in hot
aursait OF It's tormentor. The angry.
asc,oring cries Of the lapwings in
stanri, changed 70 piercing ecreanls
=, terror. which in very short .ime
trough. q crowd mum bering between
,wo and three hundred blrds to the
-escus Nov. ! thought. the hunted
,ird will escape. for It twisted and
.nrned rapidly about, trying to lose
tself among its fellows, ali lowering
"a cor. pact crowd ebout it and scream
NO their loudest But the carancho
vas not II be shaken off; he ~as never
more than yard behind his quarry.
and was near enough TO distinguish
.ha plteous screams of the chased iep-
wing amid all the tumult, as Of 8
oj-d already captive At the emo or
about minute il was seized in the
.aranchos ta!ons and, still vlo.encly
screaming, borne away. The cloud %
,auwtngs followed FOR some distance
5u. presently the, ell returned to the
-stsl spot where the ccltest had taken
,lacs: snd for an hour afterward they
continued soaring about in separate
bodies. screaming all the time with All
unusual note in their voices es OF fear
,r grief and holding excited eonc!Aves
On the ground. to all appearance as
greatly disturbed in their minds as an
,oual number of highly emotiona
suman beings would be in the event
II similar disaster oyertaking them.
Many Of the birds of the Flata re
ZION possess distinctly parasticsi nab
is. depositing their eggs in strange
aests, from which they evict the right
,'ul owners. The oven-b bird tso-cplled
On account Of its nest, built in The
shape Of an oven) is often the victim
II less Industrious and stronger birds.
rho do not hesitate to drive it from
IS home.
Most Of the birds described by Mr.
hudson are adept courtiers. The COW
lird woos mis- mate in this fashion:
"He swells himself out, beating the
ground with his wings and uttering
series Of deep internal notes. fol
owed by others loud and clear. and
occasionally, when uttering them, he
suddenly takes wing and f'ss directly
away from the female to distance of
fly yards, and performs a wide cir
ne time"
The following s.ory shows the de-
7otion OF the te-capped tanager:
During incubation the mails sits
concealed in the thick foliage close
~, amusing Itself by the hour with
singing. is performance consisting o;
hat,ering, disconnected notes uttered
so low tone 4s 20 MAKE one fancy
.ha. me bird is merely trying TO ve-
all sone melody It has forgotten, or
endesvoring 10 construc. new one
~ jerking out variety Of sounds at
'andom"
Mr. Hudson is 3 loving and etten
I've student Of bird melodies His
imooth. musical prose is admirably
;u;ed TO convey an impression of the
manifold trills and chirpings and tHlt-
,srings that may be heard or the
broad pampas Of the Argentine. He
'ays 8 high tribute 10 the vocal gifts
II the white banded nockingbird.
"For my part | can think O. no
'ther way TO describe the surpassing
excellence OF It's melody, which de-
ign,s the soul beyond all other bird
music, than by saying that th< bird
among songbrds like the diamond
among stones, which in it's many col
red spendor represents anu exceeus
ne spcclal beauty Of every other
ZEN"
The author makes this interesting
,oservation upon the habits OF song
3irds:
How Birds Sing
1t mus. be borne in mind that no
-"o sndiyid lals sing quite alike, ana
IA. the same bird constantly nitro
laess new notes into his song, and
asVer repeats mis- notes In the same
'foer. have often obserYed taat when
oird while siugirg ernits ten y
heae nrw notea q seems surprised and
'e''gnced with them. for after sile-'