152 



THE OOLOGIST. 



three. The eggs, liki' the eggs of all the 

 Raptores, Viwy greatly both in size and 

 markings. The ground e()h)r is l)luish 

 wliite and the normal specimen is uni- 

 formly spotted over the entire surface 

 with large and small spots and hlotches 

 (if redilish brown anil ani'oer. I have 

 one egg in my collection tliat entirely 

 lacks the markings, only Inr. ing a faint 

 brownish tinge on (lie smaller end. 

 xVnother lias a large, mottled reddish- 

 brown blotch entirel}' covering one side, 

 while the other side is free from mark- 

 ings of any kind. 



The aA'erage size of the sixteen eggs 

 I have collected is 2.43 I)y1.86. The 

 smallest measuring 2.87 by 1.81 and the 

 largest 2.53 by l.!)0. 



This l)ird shows none of the pluck and 

 dash in defending its nest that is often 

 seen in the smaller hawks. When the 

 nest is being rifled it generally sits on 

 some lofty tree in plain ^iew, but hard- 

 ly ever api)roaehing within one hund- 

 red 3'ards of the C(jllector. Their i)er- 

 sistency in kee])ing the same nest year 

 after year is v.ondei'ful. When once 

 the3' are established it is almost imjxjss- 

 il)le to dislodge them. Last year, 1888, 

 1 took a set of eggs on March ISth and 

 another on April 8th, both from the 

 same pair of birds, and on May 3d they 

 had again deposited a set of two wliich 

 1 liad not the heart to take. The young 

 from this set did not lea\-e lli(> nest till 

 the latter part of July. 



Although 1 lia\-e lU'ver had the op- 

 ])ortunity to examine minutely the 

 idumage of the adult bird or take 

 measurenu-nts, still his general appear- 

 ance is aluKJst as familiar to me as is 

 that of the barn-yaid fowl, and un- 

 doubtedly eveiy collector in the Union 

 knows tile bird at sight, uhicii he lirst 

 ideiiliJied liy seeing the lirick ri'd color 

 of the under side of the tail feathers. 

 March 20, 1888. D. B. R., 



Beattie, Kan. 



An Untimely End of a Set of Brown- 

 headed K'\ithatch Eggs. 



There is a saying that there is always 

 some bitter with the sweet, so it was 

 with my first eggs collected this year 

 ('8!)). On the irith of March, with a 

 companion, I started, afoot, for a little 

 hunt of a day or two, after Gt. White 

 Heron eggs. Our co.urse led through a 

 desolate i)ine forest for eight or niui; 

 miles. We trudged along the sandy 

 road for several miles without seeing 

 anything Of note when I suddenly 

 caught the sound of a Brown-headed 

 Nuthatch's chitter. I called the atten- 

 tion of my companion to it, but was 

 about to ])ass on again when the noise 

 was repeated. This time tliere was no 

 mistaking the sound. Going in the di- 

 rection of the sound, v\'e were soon 

 rewarded by seeing a Nuthatch hanging 

 to the side of a snag, ;'.boi;t eight feet 

 high, llipi)ing his tail uj) and his head 

 d(nvn, each time uttering an alarming 

 cry. On our near approach the liirtl 

 Hew to the trees, and there in the sitk; 

 of that rotten stumb Avas a tiny hole 

 scarcely an inc-h Vn ide. With great care 

 a small portion of the rotten wood was 

 broken away ami my companion iieejx'd 

 in. Then he jumped up and gave such 

 a yell as old Florida hasn't heard since 

 the Seminole war, and said "Gill there 

 is two eggs iii there." Then we both 

 yelled and rolleil on the ground and 

 yelled some more. After we hail got 

 our hajipiness somewhat under control, 

 more of the I'otteii wood was laki'U 

 away, and lol not two, but .•^crcH beauti- 

 ful fresh eggs luel oui' gaze. Ol they 

 were pretty; 1 can see then; now, six 

 lying in a circle around one in the mid- 

 dle."" 



The lU'st N\'as com[)osed of I)its of \\o(il 

 and ])ine bark, together with line chips 

 of I'otteii wood. We soon had them 

 secure, and "went on our way rejoic- 

 ing." Now this was the sweet liait, 

 the bitlei'came that niyht. 



