94 



ORNITHOLOGIST 



[Vol. 13-No. 6 



sharp, crying notes, which were probably as 

 much in anger as in frigiit. 



Fearing to find an empty nest, I delayed 

 chopping the hole open until May 2, when I 

 succeeded, after considerable eft'ort, in getting 

 the nest. I soon enlarged it snfliciently to look 

 in, and found that it contained three, delicate 

 looking, white eggs. They were perfectly 

 fresh, doubtless but a partial set. The hole 

 was about seven feet from tlie ground, in a 

 dead limb of a small tree, and was about 14 

 inches in diameter at the entrance and thirteen 

 inches deep. 



The other nests both contained very young 

 birds, and were found M.-iy 10 and 11. 



The first one was in a dead limli about twelve 

 feet up. Several otlier old holes were in the 

 same limb, showing that the bird h.ul perliaps 

 nested tliere for several years. 



When I tapped the limb with my hatchet, 

 having climbed up near to the hole, I became 

 conscious of a subdued squealing, emanating 

 from its interior, whicli 1 tliought at first must 

 be the setting bird, but on cutting a little win- 

 dow above, I could see tlie contents — three 

 young birds, with apparently others behind 

 them. 



The next day I heard the song of this Wood- 

 pecker proceeding from a bunch of trees on a 

 hillside, where I found the nest in a dead limb 

 about eight feet above the ground. It contained 

 four hungry, young woodpeckers, just hatched, 

 and two eggs, which I left undisturbed. 



A Winter Collecting Trip. 



BY .lOIlN KWAKT, YAliKEIt, UNTAUIO. 



As nearly all your papers on ornitliology 

 seem to be from the South, I tliought that a 

 few notes on a winter collecting trip in North- 

 ern Ontario, ought not to be out of place. The 

 locality is on the line of the Kingston and Pem- 

 broke liailroad, about eighty-five miles north 

 of Kingston, Ontario. The time, tlie second 

 week in December, 1887. 



The following is a list of the birds seen and 

 identified. A few others were seen, but not 

 obtaiiied for identification : 



Canada Grouse. Rare, only one specimen 

 shot. Said to have been ([uite plenty a year or 

 so ago, but a heavy fire went througli this dis- 

 trict last summer about hatching time. Since 

 then, very few have been seen. 



Knfl'ed (house. Common, said to h.ive been 

 abundant before the fire. 



Hairy Woodpecker. Common. 



Downy Woodpecker. About the same num- 

 ber met with as the preceding species. 



Arctic Three-toed Woodpecker. Tolerably 

 conunon. Out of five or six collected, only 

 one had tlie yellow patch on the head. 



I'ileated Woodpecker. Tolerablj^ common, 

 but very wild ami dilticult to approach. Saw 

 some nearly every day, but owing to heavy 

 crust on the suovv, it was impossible to go 

 through the woods quietly. Only obtained one 

 specimen. 



Blue Jay. Abundant. By fai' the most com- 

 mon bird we met with. 



Canada Jay. Only saw three or four, two 

 of whieh I obtained. lJep(Uted as very com- 

 mon, and very familiar some winters. 



American Baven. Bare. Obtained one from 

 lumbermen, which they had shot a day or two 

 before. 



Snow Bunting. Saw two large flocks. 



Nuthatch. Only saw two specimens, which 

 I did not shoot, but think they were the white- 

 breasted variety. 



Chickadee. Abundant and very familial-. 



The Turkey Buzzard in Ontario. 



I!V W. E. SAIINDEKS, LONDON, ONT. 



The Turkey Buzzard has so far been pub- 

 lished only from the extreme west end of the 

 Province, but in January, 1887, one was trapped 

 twelve miles west of London, which I saw alive 

 in March in a barn, where it was confined. It 

 was quite lively, and on being caught by its 

 owner, disgorged some of its dinner for our in- 

 spection. 



It fed greedily on carrion, and generally al- 

 lowed itself to be handled without demur. Men- 

 tioning the occurrence in June, 1887, to my 

 friend, Mr. L. H. Smith, of Strathroy, Ont., he 

 said one was shot there a few months before, 

 and in the preceding summer a newly stufl'ed 

 one had been left in a store there for some 

 weeks. 



In May, 1S87, there was mention in a paper of 

 one killed seventeen miles northeast of London 

 early in the month; and in the collection of 

 Mr. John Dodds, St. Thomas, I saw another, 

 and he informed me that he had mounted sev- 

 eral local specimens. As the previous spec- 

 imens have all been recorded from the extreme 

 west of Ontario, these notes are probably wor- 

 thy of record, as showing either progress or 

 chance occurrence ten miles farther east than 

 Iiitherto recorded. 



