September, 1918] 



The Ottawa Naturalist 



57 



years at a time, there is not enough rain to thor- 

 oughly soak the ground. During these dry periods 

 there is not a frog to be seen except near living 

 water. 



At the time above mentioned there had been a 

 prolonged rainy spell and the ground was thoroughly 

 soaked. The frogs appeared in such great numbers, 

 all over the prairie, that one could not drive without 

 running over them. A few days later the rains 

 ceased, and, as the ground began to dry, the frogs 

 disappeared, not to be seen again, at least not in 

 such great numbers, until another wet spell. 



At another time, in the eastern part of Wyoming, 

 I had dug one hundred or more post holes about a 

 foot deep, the ground being too dry and hard to 

 dig deeper, when a prolonged rainy spell thoroughly 

 soaked the ground and frogs and toads appeared in 

 great numbers. After the rain ceased, I dug the 

 holes deeper and in the bottom of every hole from 

 two to four frogs and toads had burrowed down as 

 far as the ground had been softened by the rains. 



I have often wondered how long frogs can lie 

 dormant or hibernate and if they really remain in 

 this condition between wet seasons, which, in the 

 region referred to, are sometimes several years 

 apart. 



Because so many frogs appear during rainy 

 weather and disappear again as the ground gets 



dry, may be one reason why some people think that 

 frogs ram down. 



C. M. Sternberg. 



The Night Heron at London, Ont. 

 On the morning of August 10, 1918, while 

 paddling round the pond, we flushed from the 

 edge, a bird which we took at first glance to be a 

 common bittern, some of which were found almost 

 every morning. Ten minutes later, when the light 

 was that much better, we flushed it again and saw- 

 that it was a Night Heron, Black-crowned, of 

 course. To make certain, the bird lit in a tree 

 in plain view and remained for inspection for some 

 minutes. The next morning we had a view that 

 was even better, and saw that the iris was a 

 brilliant orange-red. While flying over the pond, 

 if a Blackbird or Kingbird interfered with it in the 

 least, it gave one of its characteristic notes, which 

 is nearly represented by the syllable Quab. 



These birds nest in the St. Lawrence valley, and 

 near Ottawa, and in Manitoba, but they are ex- 

 cessively rare in western Ontario. Possibly there is 

 a nesting ground somewhere in the province, but it 

 has not yet been located. 



W. E. Saunders, London 



BOOK NOTICES. 



Our Trees: How to Know Them. By Arthur 

 I. Emerson and Clarence M. Weed. New enlarged 

 edition: Philadelphia and London; J. B. Lippincott 

 Company, 1918. 



The new edition (octavo) of this well known 

 work on the trees of North America, is indeed an 

 excellent publication. It is a volume of 295 pages, 

 the type and general get-up being very attractive. 

 The illustrations are very fine and are from photo- 

 graphs taken direct from nature. They have been 

 brought together in such a way that the non-botanical 

 reader can recognize at a glance either the whole 

 tree, or the leaves, flowers, fruits or winter twigs, 

 and thus be able to identify with ease and certainty 

 any unknown tree to which his attention may be 

 called. A single page, in each case, is devoted to 

 a discussion of each tree, opposite to which is given 

 the illustration of the tree or portions thereof. The 

 d'lstingusihing characteristics of the various species 

 are given as well as the more interesting phases of 

 the yearly cycle of each and the special value of 



each for ornamental planting. Notes on distribufe 

 are also included. In all there are 149 illustrations 

 The price of the volume is $3.50. 



Billy the Boy Naturalist. By William 

 Alphonso Murrill. 



This interesting book of 252 pages, with 43 

 illustrations, is a kind of memory ramble taken 

 through the woods for recreation, and is of special 

 interest to children, as it is a true record of how 

 one boy lived. Teachers of nature study will find 

 in !t much of interest to read to the children, and to 

 grown-ups it will bring back memories of their own 

 childhood days. 



It is an attractively gotten up little volume, printed 

 in such simple language that a child can readily 

 read and understand. The 43 illustrations are all 

 from photographs and illustrate points brought out 

 in the text. The book is published and for sale by 

 the author, whose address is Bronxwood Park, New- 

 York City. The price is $1.50 



