THE OOLOGIST 



almost throw themselves into the despoiler's 

 hauds. This Warbler's nest seemed a very 

 favorite repository for the eggs of the Cow- 

 bird {Mohithrus pecoris), as many as five 

 of whose alien eggs have more than once 

 been found in it. Ernest Ingersoll. 



Nesting of the White -rumped 

 Shrike (Collurio excubitoroides). 



BY D. H. EATON. 



fPHIS bird is one of our most common 

 -^ summer visitants, arriving about the 

 first of April or middle of INIarch, and stay- 

 ing until late in the fall, or even in some 

 cases remaining in the vicinity during the 

 winter. 



On April 16th 1877, I found the first 

 nest of this species ; it was built in an osage 

 hedge, about four feet from the ground, and 

 in plain sight from the road. 1 kept watch 

 of it, visiting it every afternoon. The birds 

 seemed not at all disturbed by my doing so ; 

 on the 19th it contained one egg, on the 

 20th two, and so on, one a day till the 24th, 

 when it contained six, and on the 25th I 

 took it, shooting the female for satisfactory 

 identification. 



Although I visited the nest every day, 

 the birds did not seem at all disturbed ; on 

 scaring the female from the nest, she would 

 take her position on a twig near by and ut- 

 ter a harsh grating sound ; presently the 

 male would join her, and they would both 

 take their stand close to the nest, giving ut- 

 terance to their cry, but on my withdraw- 

 ing my hand they would quiet down, the 

 male would fly ofl^, and the female return 

 to her nest, while I was still standing with- 

 in two feet of her treasures. 1 have, at 

 times placed my hand on the female when 

 on her nest before she would leave it. 



On April 17th I found a nest of the Log- 

 gerhead Shrike (C. ludovicianus) contain- 

 ing five eggs ; this was built in an osage 

 hedge, about five feet from the ground, and 

 in plain sight from the road. On this day 

 I also found a newly made nest of C. excu- 



bitoroides. On May 2d I found a nest of 

 the White -rumped Shrike containing six 

 eggs, built in a hedge by the side of the 

 road ; the eggs had been set on for a day 

 or two. The nest was built about seven 

 feet from the ground, higher than I have 

 ever noticed their building before or since. 

 On May 8th I found a nest of this species, 

 in the same hedge as the one found on the 

 2d, and not six rods from the site of the 

 first nest. As they were the only pair I 

 had seen in that vicinity, I concluded that 

 the nest was built by them as a second at- 

 tempt at house-heeping. I watched the 

 nest until it contained four eggs ; leaving 

 it till the next day in the hope of getting a 

 larger set, when I went for it I found some 

 rascally boy had pulled the nest partly down 

 and smashed the eggs. That was a lesson 

 to me to let well enough alone, and brought 

 the truth of the proverb ''' a bird in the 

 hand," etc., home to me with practicable 

 force. Nothing daunted at their second 

 failure to rear a brood, the same birds built 

 a third nest, this time in a detached osage 

 bush, standing close to the fence in a pas- 

 ture, and within a stone's throw of their 

 former useless attempts. This nest I ob- 

 tained with a set of five eggs on May 24th. 

 The birds made a great outcry when 1 took 

 the nest, lighting on the bush close to me, 

 uttering their harsh cry, and expressing in 

 the strongest bird language their indigna- 

 tion at iny robbery of their home. This 

 pair of birds had built three nests, and the 

 female had laid fifteen eggs in twenty-two 

 days, an example of perseverance under 

 difficulties seldom met with. After their 

 third failure I saw them no more. 



On May 22nd 1 obtained a nest and set 

 of seven eggs. Nest in same situation as 

 previous ones. On June 12th I took a 

 walk to Manteno, and, obtaining permis- 

 sion, went over the farm of Mr. Lebean. 

 I found one nest of the Shrike containing 

 five eggs, and several other nests with one 

 egg or only just completed. 



These birds invariably build in osage 

 hedges, and in nearly every case in hedges 

 by the roads ; I have found but very few 



