May 1888.] 



AND OOLOGIST. 



79 



climb, for the creepcis ill) not hold In the thin 

 b;irk, and liugeis tiiid no ciiicks to " lie to." 1 

 still think I would have been successful in niy 

 ijucsl if 1 had not spuriod niyselt and been 

 treed more than an liouihy a brindli'd l)nll-ilog'. 

 On an all day's lri|> in many ideees of woods, 

 April 22, I left untouelied in the nests several 

 sets of the larger IJuteos, the Ixirealis, l)eeause 

 of iueubation, and the liiu-atns, on account of 

 nest-washinj;s from the rain of tlie 20th. 



Numerous fine pieces of woodland in this 

 county have been cut oft' by owners ot porlahlc 

 steam saw-mills, who buy the wocid id the 

 fanners. I drove by many such dcscils which 

 were formerly good hawkinj; grounds, and 

 walked tluouyh one such patch half a mile 

 sipiare, where a touch of pathos was added to 

 its desolation by the presence of a tine lemon 

 and white setter bitcli. lying in the middle ot it, 

 stone dead. 'I'wo jiairs of Coopers were found 

 bnildin.n', and a third Cooper's nest luld one 

 egg and a steel-trap. Two other steel-traps we 

 came acro.ss in swamps, held a Blue-Winged 

 Teal and a Great Blue Heron. It was wlien we 

 were watching some .Sharp-Shinned Hawks, in 

 a sunny interval, that the first black snake of the 

 season confronted us. My clindier seized it by 

 the head and tail and bit the whole length of 

 the belly, which he said was •' the Irish receipt 

 for never having the toothache." Thinks I, my 

 fine fellow, you will not have another driuk 

 from iny Hask to-day! I can stand addled 

 hawks eggs or a stale einbrvo in the cause of 

 Science, but •' no snakes in mine." Divesting 

 the country-side of tall standing timber, had 

 centered six pairs of Ked Shouldereds in wood- 

 ed swamps fringing water-courses, where they 

 tilled the low woods with their shai-p, oft-re- 

 peated cries, while the shyer Ri'dtails. keeping 

 well out of sight, greeted us but twice when 

 at their egries with their single, long drawn- 

 out eldritcli shriek. In all cases, the Reds bred 

 on higher land and taller timber, even if a bit 

 oi-en and scattering. One feathererd nest of 

 Red Shouldered was inacessible in a swollen 

 stream. There was some compensation for the 

 long day's mishaps in an extreme set of four 

 extra large; and showy lineatus, and two eggs 

 of borealis, sharply contrasting in size. Com- 

 ing out of the woods, the veiy earliest of the 

 Whippoorwills fluttered from the dry leaves at 

 our feet. We listened for the call as we drove 

 home in the early evening, but the season is 

 late and our night-gar is mule. 



riicebes. White-bellied Swallows, Martins, 

 Bluebirds, Rollins. Chippies aiul Purple Finches, 

 began to build on our grounds ibis season, and 



have all been driven away by the resident 

 sparrows. But now a ray of light! X pair of 

 Blue Jays, braving the army of occupation, set 

 up housekeeping in a balsam-flr within six feet 

 of the house. .\ wed by the si/e of the intrud- 

 ers, the sparrows got together in noisy groups, 

 and only sent in several walking delegates 

 which were unmercifully bustled. Crow Black- 

 birds take a peep into the growing nest every 

 morning for a new laid egg for breakfast, onlj' 

 to find a rliiilanti' on guard. On the fourth 

 day, wlicn iiotb birds were away, a female rob- 

 in, worried Ironi her nwn site, came getitly into 

 the ready-made b.iiiie, arianged it slightly, and 

 quietly nestled in the hnjluw as if she had 

 come to stay; but when the owners returned, 

 she was ejected neck and crop. 



The conspicuous motions of the visitors have 

 attracted the attetition ot many cats, which 

 follow them with greedy eyes. I have vainly 

 emptied the (■(nil-bod and water-bucket at them, 

 startling the birds nuicli more than the eats. 

 One agile Maltese has been up to the nest and 

 followed the ]iair into all the adjoining trees. 

 I may be obliged to shoot this cat from the 

 open casement later on, but now I find the jays 

 can outwit her. When theeat begins to slowly 

 force its way through the thick evergreen, the 

 male will get below her, induce pussy to follow, 

 aiuJ tempt her little by little into a young leaf- 

 less elm near by, when, hop by hop, just out of 

 reach of the claws, he will slowly decoy the 

 enemy into the very to]) twigs of the tree, and 

 then fly away to his mate with whistles of Joy 

 and derision. The nest is about two-thirds of 

 the way up in the tall fir, exactly opposite a 

 secoiul story window, which happens to open 

 into my study and cabinet. Isn't this like car- 

 rying coals to Newcastle':" Every detail of 

 houskeepiug can be watched day by day, each 

 egg noted as laid, the matters of food and the 

 great questions of levitation observed by and 

 by. The site was chosen .\pril 17, and. work- 

 ing nights and murnings, the sixth day sees the 

 nest not quite finished. It is a new departure 

 to see these wild birds of the woods in the heart 

 of the city without fear, breaking of sprigs of 

 wigs of wjijd-Ua lUid spinva for the outside of the 

 home, bringing it with tamarisk from the 

 flower-garden, and addina; a fiinshing grace 

 with fine roots from the forest. The male is en- 

 titled to credit for doing his full share of the 

 work. Jleeting her mate at the nest with sticks, 

 the female would nestle in the nnildle and ar- 

 range her contribution while '■hubby" would 

 rest his stick on the rim, but when his partner 

 hopped off, the male would in turn nestle in the 



