Feb. 1888.J 



AND OOLOGIST. 



23 



North Caroliua. Five eggs. Light oicjiniy 

 white, speckled ami spotted with liright reddish 

 brown. The markings arc iiiiuli heavier and 

 closer together near tlie greater ends: .oZx 

 .47; .511 X. 48; .48x.r)n; ..57 x .47; ..")7 x .48. 



Set XI. March 30, 1887. Vemassee, South 

 Carolina. Colleeted by Arthur T. Wayne. Six 

 eggs. Two of them hav<' a pure white ground 

 color, and the other four a whitish ground. 

 Thej' are heavily speckled, and spotted with 

 bright reddish brown. The markings are con- 

 fluent near the larger ends, where they form in- 

 distinct wreaths. They are large eggs for this 

 species, and a verj' handsome set : .08 x .48 ; .07 

 X.48; .(;4x.47; .02 x .47 ; .01x.4S; .01 x .47. 



Set XII. March 12. 1SS7. Charleston, South 

 Carolina. Collected l)y Arthur '1'. Wayne. Five 

 eggs. Light creamy wliite, heavily s])otted 

 with very bright reddish brown. The mark- 

 ings are brighter and heavier than any other set 

 iu the series, and they are exceedingly hand- 

 some: .58 x. .48; .60 x .48 ; ..58 X .46 ; ..58 x .47 ; 

 .57 X .40 



The above series would seem to show that 

 four eggs Is not as common a number for a set 

 as Mr. Wayne states it to be. 



They are beautiful eggs and exhibit great 

 variation in coloration, which cannot well be 

 described, but which is readily noticed on look- 

 ing at them. They make a ver)' handsome 

 series, and are not equalled by any others of the 

 American SUtlda-.—J . P. X.] 



Nesting of the Black-billed Mag- 

 pie. 



BY FREDERICK M. DII.LE, GKEEI.Y. COI.OI! ADO. 



The Black-billed Magpie {Pica rustica hudmn- 

 ica), is a common bird in Colorado, where it is 

 found In great nuuibers in the hills and moun- 

 tains to an altitude of about eight thousand 

 feet, as well as on the plains, continuig itself, 

 however, strictly to the heavy timbei- along the 

 borders of the largest streams. 



The handsome plumage of this bird makes It 

 a conspicuous object, and they stay with us all 

 the year round. As a rascal, a thief, and a 

 rogue in general, he is a great success. They 

 make great pets and are easily domesticated, 

 but are more of a nuisance than a tame crow. 



After the j-oung are out of their nests, and 

 for the balance of the year, these birds roam 

 over the country in large docks, and n-mind one 

 of a band of pirates more than anything else. 



Their habits are of great interest to the observ- 

 er, and a series of their eggs shows great varia- 

 tion. 



The nests are very large for the size of the 

 bird, and are very conspicuous. They are often 

 placed iu the branches of a slender sapling, or 

 in some very scrubby willow. In the moun- 

 tains, the large black pine is a favorite tree 

 with the Magpie, and I have seen as many as 

 four nests in the same tree, and all occupied. 



Their height from the ground varies from six 

 to sixty feet. They are well built, and dis- 

 play the bird's cunning to great advantage, for 

 to every nest in use there are generally four or 

 five " dununles '■ in the liinnediatc neighbor- 

 hood. 



They are made of sticks, cemented together, 

 from top to bottom, with mud; and they meas- 

 ure from two to three feet high, though not 

 more than from twelve to eighteen inches 

 through tluir greatest diameter. The nest 

 proper, where the eggs are deposited, is well 

 shaped, and is composed of mud. It is at the 

 bottom of the heap. This secures a good sub- 

 stantial roof overhead, and with the two door- 

 ways, on opposite sides, it makes the conve- 

 nience complete, for our magpie, on account of 

 Ills long tail, cannot go out of the same open- 

 ing that he enters by. The fact of these two 

 doorways to the nests has been disputed by 

 some writers, but they exist nevertheless. They 

 may not always be elaborately shaped, yet they 

 are always to be found; and it is evident that 

 such a convenience was arranged for when the 

 nest was built. I do not think the female is as 

 proud of her tail as the male, but the birds are 

 to be seen with their long tails sticking through 

 one of these holes while incubating. 



As to the lining of the nests, it is either of 

 the finest of grass roots, or black horse hair. 

 Once I found an exception, where the birds 

 had used a large piece of Canton flannel for 

 this i)urpose; and another time the lining was 

 wholly composed of pieces of string. 



The eggs show great variation in size, color 

 and markings. They are usually to be found on 

 the i)lains about the first of May, and in the 

 mountains about the twenty-fifth of that 

 month. In number they vary from live to nine, 

 but seven is a good set. I once found a set of 

 eleven, in various stages of incubation, in the 

 Foot Hills, on June 8, 1880. 



After three season's collecting, I have in my 

 cabinet three sets, which show the greatest ex- 

 tremes in size and coloration. 



The first set Is of live eggs, which are ex- 

 tremely short, and have a very light ground col- 



