Evening star., 1947-11-22
This and That
BIZ Chnrles r. Trnce7peu

clotheslne posts and lines would be well
worth their place in the world. from the view
point of the birdlover, if for no other reason
than to afford perchlng place for the chickadee.
No bird looks perter, or however one chooses
to call it, than this mite, as he swings back and
forth.
That saucy head that small tail, these and
many other features give distinction to the
oldest clothesine
AS an ornament for the post, nothing alive
or lifeless can rival the cheerful chickadee
Dummy pineapples, once so popular on gate
posts, lack the verve of the chickadee
Lion heads and the like no matter how wide
their jaws cape, leave the beholder rather apa-
thetic, but just let the tiny black-capped fellow
fly on, the post takes on new characteristics.
Larger and brighter birds do not have
exactly this effect.
One might think cardinal, for instance
would cap post with brilliance, and so he does.
but the chickadee instantly takes the palm
away from him.
The garden watcher in fall and winter should
try to make sure that he sees his birds in all
their unusual places and position.
Swinging upside down goes the nuthatch
that triangular bird with the black and white
feathers; If we fail to see him head down, we
miss his most salient characteristic and will
never know exactly why the books call him the
devil down head
Here comes the noisy jay, but if his notes are
all we know of him, we miss the position he
assumes when he bends his knees and emits
that squaWk.
This lowering of the body is his sign, his
getting set" for the big noise. 1t Is more blue
jay even than the scream itself.
X X
Golden-crowned kinglet is never seen at his
best except in that rare instant when he
suddenly disappears beneath a leaf.
His best performance comes on the stiff
leaves of the rhododendrons These give him
just enough firmness to make his flip easily, in
an almost effortless way, so that the new be-
holder wonders whether he actually saw a
strange bird or not.
This is one of the most beautiful of all birds
to be seen here in the cold.
1t is green all over.
But it is special green, with sort of
ceramic quality, almost as if feathers had
nothing to do with the effect.
Feathers, the universal bird covering, can
get many effects, but this of the kinglet is one
of the best.
The golden crown probably will never be
seen but 1T is there, just the same, hidden by
the green.
The cheerful chickadee, as the song rightly
called it, is bird that wins the hearts Of all.
If 1t, alone, came to q feeding tray, the
worth while.
Usually, however it is accompanied by its
pal the titmouse.
Another comrade, the white-breasted nut
hatch, seldom comes to feeding station He
prefers his beloved trees. Perhaps no other
bird, not even the downy woodpecker, loves
trees more than the nuthatch, unless it is the
humble brown creeper.
These are a few of the birds to look for in
the winter garden.
They will come almost anywhere, even in
the city, but especially to suburban yards,
where larger plantations Of trees attract them.
Put up post with round ball on the top,
if you want to see the chickadee at its best.
He is q poser, this one, and nothing gives
him q better platform.