THE MUSEUM. 



A Monthly Magazine Devoted to Research in Natural Science. 



Vol. I. 



ALBION, N. Y., APRIL 15, 1^95- 



No. 6 



The Deposit in Nesting-Trees of 

 Chaetura pelasica. 



In the January Museum Mr. C. O. 

 Ormsbee, of Montpelier, Vt., gives 

 an interesting account of the nesting 

 sites of the Chimney Swift, [Chaetura 

 pcla^i^ica) in the years before the 

 chimneys of civihzed man were adopt- 

 ed in place of the large hollow trees 

 of the forest. 



He speaks of one such tree "the 

 diameter of the hollow of which was 

 about fifteen inches. This cavity was 

 filled for a depth of seven feet with 

 the same material (excrements and 

 feathers) as the one described by Wil- 

 son." 



"Now," he says, "had the feathers 

 been scattered promisciously through- 

 out the mass there would have been 

 nothing remarkable about it; but such 

 was not the case. The feathers were 

 nearly all carefully arranged with the 

 quills pointing out and the plumes 

 pointing towards the center of the cyl- 

 indrical mass, and were mostly ar- 

 ranged in layers, each layer being be- 

 tween an alternate layer of refuse. 

 -::- -::- -;:- g^^ ^|^jg arrangement is by 

 no means the most curious circum- 

 stance connected with the deposit. 

 Scattered through the mass were a 

 large number of wing and tail feathers 

 arranged with relation to each other, 

 exactly as they belonged in the living 

 bird. In many instances the second- 

 aries were occupying their relative po- 

 sitions, both in relation to one anoth- 



er and the primaries. In no case 

 were any other feathers than those of 

 the wing and tail so found, and in no 

 case were any bones, beaks, claws or 

 other parts of the bird found. Now 

 the question arises how came these 

 feathers in this position.' They could 

 not have been dropped by the living 

 bird nor would any bird or animal 

 have sufficient intelligence to so ar- 

 range them. The most reasonable 

 conclusion seems to be that the birds 

 died, and were buried by the accumu- 

 lations above. But in this case what 

 has become of the remainder of the 

 bird.^ "" """ '"" The question re- 

 mains unanswered, and we await re- 

 plies." 



Now, it seems to me from the 

 above, that there can be but one ex- 

 planation of this deposit and that a 

 perfectly natural and simple one. 

 First as to the layers, one of excre- 

 ments, then one of feathers. I may 

 as well state here, that the feathers, 

 arranged in so orderly a manner, are 

 undoubtedly those of the young birds 

 who fell from the nests in the breed- 

 ing season when they first tried their 

 wings. After the breeding season the 

 cavity would, of course, be used as a 

 roosting place at night, as the chimneys 

 are now, for about two months(July and 

 August) during which time the excre- 

 ments from the immense colony would 

 collect and form a layer of some little 

 thickness, which would be increased 

 by the deposits of the birds, the next 

 spring when they returned from the 



