18 BIRDS OF ILLINOIS. 



other moisture-loving trees, and attain an average height of about 

 100 feet. Good-sized birches, Betula nigra (and lenta?), also grow 

 along the margins of the ponds. It should be added that these 

 ponds are nowhere very deep, and that they consequently sometimes 

 become completely dry in seasons of extreme drought. 



The surroundings of these ponds consist of continuous magnificent 

 forest (now deprived of many of its finest trees and no doubt doomed 

 to early destruction), comprising everywhere a mixed growth, em- 

 bracing altogether more than fifty species of trees, among which 

 oaks (11 species) and hickories (5 species) predominate, although 

 the sweet gum, black gum (Nyssa sylvatica), box-elder (Negundo 

 aceroides), white elm (Ulmus americana), honey-locust (Gleditschia 

 triacanthos) , coffee-bean (Gymnocladus canadensis), black walnut (Jug- 

 lans nigra), hackberries (Geltis cccidentalis and mississippiensis), 

 tulip tree (Liriodendron tulipifera), and other species are (or were) 

 also abundant; there are also a few beeches (Fag us ferruginea), and 

 black cherries (Primus serotina), besides occasional specimens of the 

 beautiful Catalpa speciosa. These woods are very open, it being 

 comparatively easy, in many places, to drive through them with a 

 light wagon. There is almost no shrubby undergrowth, the usual 

 underwoods consisting of red-bud (Cercis canadensis}, dog-wood 

 (Cor mis Jiorida), pawpaw (Asimina trlloba), and mulberry (Moras 

 r nbra) here attaining the stature of good-sized trees. The unob- 

 structed sunlight, which, directly or by reflection and diffusion, 

 freely permeates all portions of these beautiful forests, promotes the 

 development of a luxuriant and varied herbaceous growth grasses, 

 sedges, ferns, flags, balsam-plants (Impatient fidra and paUida), car- 

 dinal flower (Lobelia cardinalis), etc., according to locality, and others 

 far too numerous to mention ; even the decaying logs are covered 

 with weeds, thus presenting the appearance of miniature gardens. 

 Other characteristic features are the abundance and luxuriance of 

 climbing plants, embracing no less than four (probably five) species 

 of wild grape, the Virginia creeper (Ampelopsis quinqucfolia) , cross- 

 vine (Bignonia capreolata), trumpet-flower (Tecoma radicans), pipe- 

 vine (Aristolochia tomentosa) and others, not forgetting the far too 

 abundant poison vine (Rhus toxicodendron). The switch-cane (Arun- 

 d in aria tecta) occasionally chiefly monopolizes the soil, and the 

 scouring rush (Equisetum hyemale) sometimes constitutes the exclu- 

 sive growth, but only in a few places of limited extent. 



It is because of this abundance of sunlight and exuberance of 

 vegetation, that these woods surpass all others in abundance of 



