I'liK oOi.ocisr 



8Sl 



latter was once the nioro al>iiiiil;iiit of 

 the two. 



There is another instance whicli I 

 wouitl like to relate. To uiy certain 

 knowledge I have never seen an Or- 

 chard Oriole in this vicinity while the 

 Baltimore is very abundant. Upon 

 going to central Illinois, I fonnd the 

 reverse of the case presented, the Or- 

 chard Oriole was present antl the Hal- 

 tiniore absent. An obst rving re.-ident 

 informed nie tluit he had never seen 

 cue though on a constant outlook for 

 them, and, I ma_v add tlie presence of 

 the Baltimore is not hard to ileteet. 



Many instances of a like character 

 might be related. I am at loss in as- 

 signing a reason for liiis, as I do not 

 think the locality- can be unfavoi'able. 

 Can any of I lie readers enlighten me? 



(x. FOTTKU, 



Peru, I ml. 



A Captive Screech Owl . 



On the morning of Feb. 10th we ca})- 

 tured a Screech Owl of the red tyjjc in 

 our barn, where he had been driven l)v 

 the .storm. I kept him in the loft 

 for three weeks and .so had a good 

 opportunity to study him. I found that 

 he slept in the morning, when it was al- 

 most impossible to awake him, but was 

 very lively in the afternoon. He seemed 

 to prefer to eat at night. He killed two 

 large rats either of wliich would cer- 

 tainly have outweighed him: a feat 

 which surprised me Very much. I have 

 heard him give three distinct notes. 

 One is like twee-ec-ee, twee ee ce, ee-a, 

 ee-a. Another is ov made entirely in 

 the throat. His alarm note is made by 

 snai)ping his beak. I have nevei- hoard 

 him give the schreeching notes in eaj)- 

 tivity. He measured as follows, wings 

 spread, 19 in.: length. lOA in.: tail :} in.: 

 ear tufts, li in. 



\V. K. AlKKN. 

 I'x'uson, Vt. 



A Peculiar Nesting Site. 



It was eariv during the collecting of 

 the spring of 1S!»() that my attention 

 was calleil to the peculiar nesting site 

 of a pair of Yellow-shafted Flickers 

 which I shall descriiie. 



On a small hill aiiout a (juarter <if a 

 mile disiiuit from my home stood a 

 haystack which had been placed there 

 two viars prior to the time of which I 

 write. 'I he ni'ighl)or to wliom tiie 

 stack belonged cut it through the mid- 

 dle and hauled away one portion of it, 

 leaving the other standing with one 

 end smoo'hiy trimmed. 



Soon alter tiic oi>ening of lh(> follovv- 

 ing spring when I happeneil to j)ass 

 that uay 1 saw a ]iair of Yellow-shafted 

 Flickers about, th ■ stack, which showed 

 signs of WMUting to make tiiat a "lixed 

 habitation." 



One bright morning a few days later 

 when j)assing I was gically amused at 

 the efforts of one of the pair. It was 

 clinging to the perpendicular end of the 

 stack, and throwing out chipjied straw 

 from an excavation ^\ Inch it was at 

 work on at a rate to defy competition. 



The work on the excavation was con- 

 tinued through nearly a week. Of 

 course it was inters])ersed with frequent 

 romps and song and games of peek-a-boo 

 around the fence posts, a very chai act- 

 eristic performance for Flickers which 

 have hit on a nesting site ami are pro- 

 gressing in its completion. 



When completed the excavation was 

 about twenty inches deep. 'J"he en 

 trance was made eight feet or more 

 above the ground. The l)urrow wa.s 

 two and one half inches in diameter 

 and was dug directly into the st;ick for 

 six inches then turned directly <iown-. 

 ward and w.is slightly eidarged :il the 

 bottom. 



Tht^ nest was composed of chips of 

 .straw. The depositing of the j-ggs 

 soon followed the couipletinn of the 

 nest, and on thi'J^th of May i«S»l). I look 



