Bird- Lore 



To this generally early arri\al of spring 

 migrants there were some notable exceptions, 

 such as the Purple Martin, which was first 

 obser\'ed on April lo, whereas its usual time 

 of appearance is March 29; the Barn Swallow 

 first seen April 24 (average, April 12); 

 Nighthawk, May 8 (May 3); Baltimore 

 Oriole, May 9 (May 2); Bobolink, May 9 

 (May 2); Rose-breasted Grosbeak, May 10 

 (May 3); and the Alder Flycatcher, May 19 

 (May 13). 



In the case of the great majority of mi- 

 grants, particularly those that arrived earlier 

 than usual, the bulk of the species lagged 

 considerably behind, and appeared even 

 much later than common, this resulting in a 

 comparative scarcity of birds that was 

 noticeable throughout practically all the 

 spring migration. At what should have been 

 the height of the migratory movement, the 

 weather suddenly became very warm for a 

 few days, and evidently the birds passed on 

 without tarrying. As a consequence of this, 

 many transients did not at all reach their 

 ordinary abundance for the spring season. 

 This warm spell, however, does not fully ac- 

 count for the fact that few birds, particularly 

 winter visitors, remained beyond their usual 

 time, since it occurred after many had gone, 

 having departed even during the cool weather. 

 Yet some remained beyond their ordinar\' 

 time, as established by records of past years. 

 .Among these were the Hermit Thrush, last 

 seen on May 10 (average date of departure. 

 May i); Ruby-crowned Kinglet, May 9 

 (average. May 4); American Coot, May \S 

 (May 5); American Merganser, May 15 

 (May 4); Purple Finch, May 19 (May 8); 

 Chestnut-sided Warbler, May 26 (May 22); 

 Tree Swallow, May 18 (May 14); Bonaparte 

 Cull, May 18 (May 9); and Olive-backed 

 Thrush, May 30 (May 24). 



Furthermore, two species remained as late 

 as ever before — the Solitary Sand|)ipcr, seen 

 by Miss M. T. Cooke, near Black I'ond, V'a., 

 on May 21, the latest previous record of 

 which is May 21, 1906; and the Black- 

 throated Blue Warbler, observed by Mr. 

 Joseph Kittredge, Jr., near Washington, on 

 May 30, which is the latest recorded spring 

 date since May 30, 1888. Two species re- 



mained later than ever before — the Black 

 Duck, seen by Mr. E. A. Preble, near Dyke, 

 Va., on May 18, its previously latest spring 

 record being May 11, 191 7; and the Red- 

 breasted Merganser, found by Mr. Joseph 

 Kittredge, Jr., near Washington, on May 10, 

 whereas its jjreviously latest date is May 2, 

 1920. 



.\mong the few transients that reached 

 their normal abundance was the Myrtle 

 Warbler; and the Blue- winged Warbler, 

 always a rare bird about Washington, seemed 

 to be rather more often in evidence. 



Many familiar species, particularly tran- 

 sients, were present in unusually small num- 

 bers. Among these might be especially men- 

 tioned the Purj)lc Finch, which was verj' 

 seldom observed, the Cape Maj' Warbler, 

 Tennessee Warbler, Blackburnian Warbler, 

 Chestnut-sided Warbler, Rose-breasted Gros- 

 beak, Tree Swallow, Wilson Thrush, Olive- 

 backed Thrush, and Gray-cheeked Thrush. 



On the other hand, the Bonaparte Gull 

 and the Ring-billed Gull seemed to be ex- 

 ceptionally common, and remained in con- 

 siderable numbers up to the middle of May, 

 especially on the Potomac River below Wash- 

 ington. The Laughing Gull was very much 

 in evidence some 40 to 60 miles down the 

 Potomac River from Washington, and was 

 seen also not infrequently within a com- 

 paratively short distance of the city. Either 

 it is gradually extending its regular range up 

 this river, or obscr\-ers have recently been 

 gi\'ing it more attention. 



The Ducks that were present abundantly 

 on the Potomac River during the winter re- 

 mained throughout a considerable portion of 

 .\pril, and the Lesser Scaup Duck was numer- 

 ous until al least the middle of May. On 

 May 14 three flocks of White-winged Scoters, 

 totaling some 300 birds, were seen on the 

 Potomac River about 15 miles above Colonial 

 Beach. On the same day, along the river 

 between Colonial Beach and Washington, the 

 Great Blue Heron was frequently seen pur- 

 suing its favorite pastime of \-isiting the fish- 

 pounds to obtain the fish imprisoned there. 



Three Common Terns were found by Mr. 

 Joseph Kittredge, Jr., on May 9 and 10, on 

 the river near Washington. The American 



