56 IOWA ACADEMY OF SCIENCE Vol. XXVI, 1919 



Although all the meadowlark nests found happened to belong 

 to the other species, there is no doubt that magna breeds. It was 

 present and in song until well into July, and adults were frequently 

 seen carrying a beakful of insects. 



106. Sturnella neglecta. Western Meadowlark. A common 

 summer resident from March 15 to November 1 and a rare winter 

 resident. Two birds spent the winter of 1914-1915 about a straw 

 stack on the farm of Mr. Henry Friese. These birds fed around 

 the stack and in the barnyard and spent the night in holes in the 

 stack. Two were seen on February 10 and 11 north of town by W. 

 Robinson. A nest containing two eggs was found May 14, 1914. 

 No more were laid and these two hatched May 21. On May 24, 



1914, Harry Mann guided me to a nest containing seven eggs and 

 I took some photographs of it. These eggs hatched sometime after 

 May 24 and before June 8 as after the water receded from its 

 high level after the freshet the seven young and an adult were found 

 drowned in the nest. The water had come high enough to cover 

 the nest with about four inches of water. 



107. Icterus spurius. Orchard Oriole. A rare and local summer 

 resident. Previous to 1915 a single bird noted on August 27, 1913, 

 was the only record for the county. On June 15, 1915, a singing 

 male was found in a small orchard. Two pairs of birds later 

 nested in this orchard and built four nests, two of which never 

 contained eggs. One containing two eggs was located June 21, 



1915. On July 4 this nest contained three young which left the 

 nest on July 7 although not yet able to fly. The second nest, con- 

 taining five eggs, was found on July 10. All nests were swung 

 between upright limbs of apple trees. 



It is probable that other nesting pairs occur in similar places 

 throughout the county, but they are very local and one misses 

 them entirely unless he happens to visit the particular grove in 

 which they nest. 



108. Icterus galbula. Baltimore Oriole. The Baltimore oriole 

 was an abundant summer resident from April 29 to September 7. 

 The great elms found so commonly along the streets in Marshall- 

 town were favorite nesting sites for these birds and scarcely a 

 block of the trees could be found which did not contain one or 

 more nesting pairs of this species. One partly completed nest was 

 found May 10, 1913. It contained one egg on May 24 but was 

 abandoned. On June 8, 1914, a nest containing several young was 

 found low down in the cemetery and June 24, 1914, another con- 

 taining four young was found within ten feet of the ground. 



