84 The Ottawa Naturalist. [July 



Thrasher, all singing beautifully, besides 2 Spotted Sandpipers, 

 1 Kingfisher, many Chimney Swifts, 1 Humming Bird, 4 Redeyed 

 Vireos, I Killdeer, 1 Red-shouldered Hawk, 2 Nighthawks. 

 Total, 41 species. In closing he exhibited a number of birds' 

 eggs which had been collected by a young lady of Carp. 



Mr. J. W. Gibson, of the Ottawa Normal School, and Mr. 

 G. A. Moore, Principal of the Carp High School, briefly addressed 

 the gathering. 



Between some of the addresses, Mr. T. A. Brown and the 

 Normal vStudents furnished some excellent music. 



The evening after the rain, was indescribably lovely and 

 must have brought a ."suspension of disgust" to use a Bryonic 

 phrase, to any world-weary individuals of the party, if such there 

 were, and none could leave so restful a scene without regret. 



E. McQ. 



CROSSBILLS NESTING IN SOUTHERN ONTARIO. 



By W. E. Saunders, London, Ont. 



A nest of Crossbills, species unknown, was found last April 

 by Mr. Harold J. Clark in a small woods about two miles east of 

 London. On April 28th the nest was taken. It contained three 

 eggs, with a bluish-white ground, sparingly streaked and spotted 

 with black and brown. The nest was placed in a maple tree 

 against the trunk, 45 feet from the ground, and was composed 

 mainly of bark strips with additions of grasses and twigs and 

 was lined with fine bark strips. The nest contained also, the 

 egg of a Cow Bird which shows that the latter species does not 

 intend to lose any opportunity for reproduction, this being a 

 very early date for Cow Bird's eggs to be fovmd. 



This forms the first stated record of Crossbills nesting in 

 lower Ontario and it is to be regretted that the nest was not 

 seen in situ by someone who could have identified the species 

 before the eggs were taken. It is likely, however, that the nest 

 belonged to the American Crossbill, as no white wing-bars were 

 noticed and this species has been moderately common during 

 parts of the past winter. 



Some years ago, I received a report of the occurrence of 

 White Winged Crossbills in spotted plumage, young birds of 

 course, which were taken near London, in April or May, and 

 had doubtless been raised in the vicinity, but the specimens had 

 been lost when I heard of it and no re-occurrence of the event 

 had been suspected until the present year. As the Crossbills 

 belong to the most erratic group of sparrows, as regards nesting 

 habits, we need not be surprised if such occasional records are 

 made. 



