THE SEASON 



XI. October 15 to December 15, 1918 



Boston Region — The two months since 

 mid-October have witnessed the transition 

 from the close of fall migration to the con- 

 ditions of early winter. October was re- 

 markable for its succession of fine sunny 

 days without extreme weather. Novem- 

 ber, on the other hand, was less delightful, 

 with many gray and rainy days. The first 

 snowfall came December 3 and was fol- 

 lowed by a second, with several inches of 

 snow. Succeeding warmer weather, how- 

 ever, with rain, had quite melted it away 

 by the 15th, revealing once more the grass 

 still green underneath. 



The latter half of October saw prac- 

 tically the close of the autumnal migration. 

 The passing hosts of BlackpoU and Myrtle 

 Warblers quickly dwindled; the last one of 

 the former was seen at Cambridge on 

 October 31 and most of the latter had gone 

 a little before. Fox Sparrows arrived in 

 some numbers during the latter half of the 

 month, but were not as abundant as in 

 some years. The first Tree Sparrows were 

 noticed on November 3, in Cambridge, 

 but the flight seems to have been small. 

 Hairy Woodpeckers have been unusually 

 noticeable. A number appear to be win- 

 tering in Cambridge, attracted, no doubt, 

 by the many dying or partly decayed trees 

 which, after the plague of gypsy, brown- 

 tail and leopard moths, elm-leaf and other 

 beetles, during the past decade, have 

 gradually succumbed. About November 

 II, a Hairy Woodpecker was seen on two 

 or three successive days excavating a 

 roosting-hole in a dead branch of an elm. 

 Downy Woodpeckers have also been more 

 conspicuous than usual, coming freely into 

 the more settled parts of the city, attracted, 

 like the Hairys, by the amount of food to 

 be found in the decaying trees. A few 

 Flickers still remain, and are doubtless 

 the ones that will winter. More Black- 

 capped Chickadees are to be seen than 

 last year, apparently, yet there are no 

 large bands, but small companies, seldom 



over five in number. These have settled 

 down for the winter, each in some par- 

 ticular neighborhood. Thus, one little 

 company of five is usually to be seen work- 

 ing through the shade trees, spruces, and 

 willows, of the part of Cambridge near the 

 Botanic Gardens. 



Much interest attaches to the arrival of 

 the irregular winter visitors from the 

 north. Already, in late September, a few 

 Red-breasted Nuthatches had made their 

 appearance, but the flight has been dis- 

 appointingly small; only a comparatively 

 few birds seem to have come from the 

 north. Great Northern Shrikes appeared 

 in November and have been rather com- 

 moner than usual, even coming into the 

 city. A few Snowy Owls have been re- 

 ported from the coast, as at Ipswich and 

 Essex. Pine Grosbeaks in small numbers 

 also came in November, and, best of all, 

 Evening Grosbeaks are with us again. A 

 few were noticed in Belmont, November 

 29, and other small flocks have been re- 

 ported from several nearby localities. It 

 has been suggested by Dr. Walter Faxon 

 that the extensive planting of bo.x-elders, 

 or ash-leaved maples, has been responsible, 

 in part at least, for the almost regular 

 visits of this bird in the east of late years. 

 The seeds of this tree form one of its 

 favorite articles of diet, and it is interesting 

 to see that there is an abundant crop on 

 the trees this year. 



In Cambridge, the Starling is becoming 

 a familiar bird and bids fair to make an 

 attractive addition to the city avifauna if 

 it keeps within bounds. Its habit of 

 gathering in small companies in tree-tops, 

 and there keeping up a musical soliloquy 

 of sweet, whistled notes is at least a decided 

 improvement over the House Sparrows' 

 jargon. An interesting effect of the deep 

 snow of December 6 was to temporarily 

 deprive the street Pigeons of their ground 

 food, so that at Cambridge three or four 

 were seen awkwardly balannDg among the 



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