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Birds and Salt 



In reference to the interesting notes on the 

 above in Bird- Lore, by PLsther Recks and 

 Fred. J. Pierce, I would like to add that I 

 have found Pine Siskins and Crossbills fond 

 of salt. One year, about the middle of April, 

 we had bacon curing in sugary brine in a 

 large tub placed on a back veranda. There 

 was a leak from this tub onto and between 

 the planking of the floor and both species 

 came in considerable numbers to enjoy the 

 encrusted salt, and even picked away and 

 swallowed small fragments of wood saturated 

 with the brine. 



A friend, when trapping in the mountains, 

 spilt some salt outside his cabin door and a 

 few Pine Siskins ate it ravenously. Some days 

 later he accidentally dropped a small quan- 

 tity of strjxhnine, which he was using in a 

 bait close to the cabin door. Whether some 

 Pine Siskins, already accustomed to come 

 there for salt, mistook the str>'chnine for that 

 substance, or perhaps thought it grit, a few 

 unfortunately were poisoned, and were found 

 dead on the snow outside the cabin. 



Many bird fanciers 3'ears ago used to warn 

 people against giving salt to their cage birds, 

 considering it poisonous. — J. E. H. Kelso, 

 M.D., Edgeuvod, B. C. 



Scarcity of Nighthawks 



As the summers pass, I notice, with in- 

 creasing apprehension, that the ranks of the 

 Nighthawk become smaller and smaller. 

 This bird, which a few years ago was quite 

 plentiful throughout the summer, has now 

 become so rare in the vicinity of my home 

 that the sight of it is a matter of special 

 interest. A few years ago the summer even- 

 ings were rarely complete without the sharp 

 notes of the Nighthawk cutting the air as 

 they circled about in quest of aerial insects, 

 and the fall migration of them was often the 

 most spectacular ornithological feature of the 

 year. I well remember one fall afternoon, 

 about five years ago (unfortunately, no exact 

 date was recorded), when I witnessed by far 



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the largest migration of Nighthawks I have 

 ever seen. For a period of fifteen minutes or 

 more the air was literally alive with Night- 

 hawks; almost as far as one could see they 

 filled the sky. 1 believe they numbered, ap- 

 proximately, ten thousand, but it is, of 

 course, very hard to correctl\- estimate so 

 many individuals at one time. 



In 1919, I saw the first Nighthawk of the 

 year in Cedar Rapids, Iowa (35 miles south of 

 Winthrop), on IVIay 25, and this was the only 

 date I secured for my spring migration record. 

 None were seen again until August 23, when 

 two were seen at my home. A flock of about 

 twenty-five was seen August 28, 1919, which 

 was apparentlj' migrating, and no more were 

 seen that year. 



This year (1920) a lone Nighthawk ap- 

 peared May 10, and not another one was seen 

 until August 30, when I saw several. One 

 more appeared September 12 and this was 

 the last one seen. I have spent practically 

 every day throughout the summer out of 

 doors and feel quite sure that very few Night- 

 hawks appearing during the day and evening 

 passed unnoticed. Moreover, I Lave gone 

 through my records very carefully to make 

 sure that no notes of its appearance have 

 been overlooked. 



In comparison with the large numbers of 

 Nighthawks which formerly were found here, 

 the few visitants noted above seem, to me, 

 to indicate that some serious factor has pre- 

 vented their return in even a small measure 

 of their former abundance. I would be glad 

 to hear from bird students in other parts of 

 the country in regard to the numbers of 

 Nighthawks they have observ-ed in the last 

 few years. — Fred. J. Pierce, Winthrop, 

 Iowa. 



Birds' Love for Color 



One day I tied three new door-keys to- 

 gether with about a yard of bright red satin 

 ribbon for Helen, my little girl, to play with. 

 A short time afterward they had disappeared, 

 and although we searched everywhere, they 



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