Evening star., 1945-08-30
This and That
By Charles Z. TraceWeU.
'KENSINGTON, Md.

hENS1N1 1ON, Mo,
Dear Sir:
This is the unusual tale of scarlet
tanager who, for the past three sea-
sons, has honored our feeding station
with his fascinating presence.
This beautiful bird, usually so shy,
has paraooxically become our boldest
guest. Friendly from the start, he has
gradually become more and more fear
less, until this year, tempted by bit
of cake, he will alight in the palm of
our hand, talking to us in low chitter-
ing as if thanking us for our hos
pitality.
Each year he arrives about the first
Of May brilliant in his mating coat
of scarlet and black. His wife follows
a bit later, modestly clad in protective
olive green. They nest somewhere
within the deep thicket adjoining our
place, safe from prying eyes.
Several times each day he calls at
our back door, which opens on a ter
race, f1uttering from bench to chair to
attract attention, and flying eagerly
to our hand when offered food. Some
times he fills his beak and takes it
directly to his mate. perched in
nearby tree, and then returns for his
share. The lady is timid and will not
come near us. His favorite food is
bread and cake, and he is not tempted
with seeds or fruit. We think insects
comprise the bulk of his diet He is
not shy of strangers and therefore
quite willing to show off for the enter
tainment of our friends We recently
secured an excellent color photo OF
him which is now being processed.
About the middle of July he begins to
molt, shedding at first a few feathers
from the middle of his back The new
feathers come in olive green, and by
the end of August he is indeed a sorry
looking creature, with bare spots in
terspersed with Splotches of red and
green. Even his beak turns green al
though he retains his black wings and
tail He is preparing for the long trip
South with his family.
"One day soon we will miss him and
know he is on his way to the South
American tropics, perhaps Bolivia, and
we will see him no more until some late
spring day he arrives again in our back
yard, resplendent in his coat of scarlet
and black.
NCAy sLiSCAcly, ~. w. d.
The scarlet tanager, the very breath of
the tropics, goes through elaborate color
changes.
In the striped nesting plumages the
sexes look alike.
In his first fall plumage the male is
yellower and has browner wings than
the young female.
He goes to South America in this dress
for his first winter.
In the land Of sunshine he acquires a
pale red body and black tail, but
retains largely the brown wings.
In this garb ne comes to us again,
mates and breeds
After the nesting season, he has his
first full molt, after which the body is
again yellow-green, with the entire
wing becoming clear black.
Away he goes South again, much re-
sembling the female, but both wings
and tail are now black.
While in the South he acquires a
red dress again, this time a deeper
scarlet
When he comes North, he is arrayed
in his full adult beauty.
The color of the body is changed
twice year thereafter-from scarlet to
yellowish-green in the North, and from
yellowish-green to scarlet in the South,
each time passing through dappled
stage of red and green, but with black
tail and wings.
A few freak males have bright vel
low plumage.
Surely this is one.of the most wonder
full birds to visit us, but few of us will
be so fortunate to have one eat from the
hand. There is some chance that this
particular specimen was brought up by
kind person after 1t had fallen from a
nest. and therefore lost q bit of the
natural fear which is its heritage.
In our own yard we have never seen a
scarlet tanager except in the trees, and
this not very often. The next time we
zee one We win offer 1t cake. q