156 



THE OSPHEY. 



lookintc little speciinens, with short stubby tails, 

 i 111 perfectly feathered heads and wiiiisrs. and 

 with lef^s and feet apparently several sizes too 

 larpe for them. 



They have not as yet acquired much skill in 

 flyiiif;-, and ffo floppiiiff aloiif,^ for a few yards, 

 and then tumble in the first long- grass that 

 comes handy; but they are experts in running 

 and climliiiig", and seem to understand how to 

 hide themselves as well as the old biixls. 



After spending a couple of weeks along- the 

 banks of the upper part of the river they gradu- 

 ally move down toward its mouth, and by 

 August loth, they are abundant all over the 

 marshes. They are now very tame and unsus- 

 picious, and can be easily approached and 

 studied. 



At low tide they spend much of their time 

 hunting about the drift left on the river bank, 

 and ruiiiiing over the mud of the creeks and 

 little inlets in search of small shells or other 

 marine life left by the tide; but as the tide rises 

 thev are driven to the reeds and tall grass where 

 they rock and swing, run up and slide down 

 the smooth grass stems, and go throug-h all sorts 

 of acrobatic feats. In some cases they use their 

 tails to assist in climbing about, but at other 



times they rely entirely upon the strength of 

 their feet and legs. 



Ill flying they keep very low, seldom over two 

 feet above the grass, and in crossing the river 

 they generally drop down to within a few inches 

 of the water, risings ag'-ain if necessary as they 

 reach the opposite shore, and disappear at once 

 in the thick cover. But if one keeps quiet, they 

 are prettv sure to be seen soon, taking a sly 

 peep from the top of some thick clump of grass 

 or patch of reeds. As a rule their flight is re- 

 g-ular, and not .so jerky as that of many of the 

 sparrows, but occasionally they make one or two 

 sharp turns as if undecided where to go, and are 

 very apt to take a quick turn to the right or left 

 just before disappearing in the grass. 



If wounded they immediately make for the 

 longest and thickest cover, and it is almost im- 

 possible to find them again. 



When I leave my little friends about the 

 middle of September, they are still in full pos- 

 session of the river banks and marshes; but 

 when I visit them again in the middle of October, 

 they have diminished in numbers, and by the 

 first of Novemlier they have departed for their 

 scnithern home. 



OsPKEY Nest at 1 



>sEA, Mass. 



Tlie i-onti-ibiilor is unknown to tlie editor. He would oblige the Osprey Coiupuny by commuuicatinK his name and 

 information as to the nest. 



