74 



THE OOLOGIST. 



commenced nest building. On April 

 20th I honored them with another 

 call and an hour each without result 

 and then proceeded to search the 

 commons and found both nests in 

 about thirty minutes. They were on 

 high ground and differed from the 

 first only in more compact construc- 

 tion. One contained three and the 

 other four eggs — all fresh. The fourth 

 and last nest was found May 9th and 

 the four eggs were upon the point 

 of hatching. I was eating luncheon 

 in the shade of a pile of railroad ties 

 when a lark came over the ties and 

 aldghted upon the commons. After 

 feeding a short time she returned on 

 the route of her coming out and drop- 

 ped to the ground behind a pile of 

 brick. As I started toward the spot 

 I caught sight of her on the wing 

 again. S^he flew to a lump of earth 

 about 100 yards distant and smoothed 

 out her feathers awhile, thence to a 

 high portion of the commons and fin- 

 ally arose high in the air and drop- 

 ped into a tilled field a quarter of a 

 mile away. I searched the high 

 ground thoroughly but could find no 

 nest and returned to the ties. Some- 

 thing like half an hour later the whole 

 proceedings was repeated to where 

 she arose from behind the brick and 

 alighted upon the lump of earth af- 

 ter which no further attention was 

 paid to her. The nest was quickly 

 found. I had failed to search behind 

 the bricks on the first occasion be- 

 cause the ground was very low and 

 damp and about the last place where 

 one would expect this species to build. 

 J. Clair Wood, 

 Detroit, Mich. 



Some Notes for 1904. 



May 13. — Brown Thrasher (Harpor- 

 hynchus rufus). Nest, containing 

 four very slightly incubated eggs, 

 placed 651/2 inches up in top of bro- 



ken-down bush, resting on other 

 bushes, all of which were thickly 

 overgrown with green running briars; 

 the entire clump standing about five 

 feet from the edge of marsh on one 

 side of a triangle, the other sides be- 

 ing bound by a freshly ploughed field 

 and much used road, from either of 

 which the nest was not further than 

 thirty feet. Nest of coarse sticks and 

 dry leaves, lined with an abundance 

 of fine roots. Parent birds very rest- 

 less and uneasy, often approaching 

 within two feet of me, and one perch- 

 ing on the limb. The eggs measure 

 as follows: 1.02x.7'6, 1.02x.75, l.Olx.74, 

 1.03X.72. 



May 13. — ^Mocking-bird (Mimus 

 polyglottos). Nest, containing four 

 eggs, embryos medium, placed about 

 nine feet from the ground and near 

 the top of small 'box tree standing in 

 city cemetery; made of sticks, fine 

 roots, leaves, grass, cedar bark and 

 piece of cotton cloth, lined with fine 

 roots, grass and a few horse-tail hairs 

 and feathers. Eggs measure as fol- 

 lows: .97X.73, .93X.74, .94x.73, .96x.73. 



May 14. — Brown Thrasher (Harpor- 

 hynchus rufus). Nest, containg four 

 fresh eggs measuring as follows: 1.07 

 X.73, .1.07x72, 1.02X.74, 1.06x.74; placed 

 about 9 feet from the ground' in cedar 

 thickly covered with ivy, standing in 

 city cemetery; made of grass, leaves 

 and stick, lined with fine roots. 



May 16. — Field Sparrow ('Spizella 

 pusilla). Nest containing four slight- 

 ly incubated eggs showing the follow- 

 ing sizes: .58x.49, .65x.49, .o8x.47, .57x 

 .48; placed in small gallbury bush, 8 

 inches above the ground and 35 feet 

 from road; made of grass and weed 

 stalks, lined with very fine grass and 

 hair from the tail of horse. 



May 16. — Field Sparrow (Spizella 

 pusilla). Nest, containing four fresh 

 eggs measuring as follows: .61x.51, 

 .65X.48, .63X.51, .63x.50; placed nine 

 inches from the ground in small 



