THE OOLOGIST. 



of Detroit, Mich : " My experience in hyb- 

 ridism is limited. I liave had iny attention 

 called to specimens said to be hybrids ; one 

 instance last fall, of a specimen said to be a 

 cross between a mink and a squirrel, but 

 upon examination 1 found it to be a squir- 

 rel of the black variety with the color of 

 the mink (dark brown). Another iiistance 

 some time ago, of a hybrid between a Mal- 

 lard Duck (Alias hoschas) and Dusky Duck 

 (^4. ohscura). This was a bona fide hyb- 

 rid, but I traced it to domestication. A 

 hunter obtained eggs of the Dusky Duck 

 and hatched them under a hen. The birds 

 staid with him, for the reason that he dis- 

 abled them from flying. He procured Mal- 

 lards (domestic) and they mated with his 

 Dusky Ducks. The young of the two show- 

 ed markings of both species, and he used 

 them for decoys. JSome of them got away 

 and were killed in a flock of Mallards. 1 

 think if hybrids were properly traced, they 

 would prove to be brought about by domes- 

 tication." 



birds have been noticed to inhabit a certain 

 tract about Utica, and observations confirm 

 the fact that this is an organized family, 

 and that they confine themselves to this lo- 

 cality. During the summer of 1877, the 

 same peculiarity was carefully noticed, and 

 formed the nucleus on which to base later 

 observations concerning this habit. Wheth- 

 er this bird carries its polygamous habits 

 out on a larger scale than that noticed, we 

 are unable to say. There is much yet to 

 be learned of this bird's eccentricities. 



The Cow-bird a Polygamist. — Few 



authors have noticed in their writings, the 

 polygamous character of the Cow-bird, its 

 sporadical habit of alienating its eggs into 

 the nests of other and usually smaller birds, 

 being the main and much harped upon, yet 

 at all times interesting, theme concerning 

 its life-history. But that it is doubtless 

 polygamous, and to a very appreciable ex- 

 tent, is certain, and though this habit, ap- 

 parently co-active with that of using other 

 birds'nests, might be naturally conceived to 

 be consociated with it, yet seeing the Cow- 

 bird usually in pairs, would tend to favor 

 this habit as only an exception. The char- 

 acteristic is noticeably prominent during the 

 earlier part of the nesting season, when the 

 truth of the hypothesis may be brought out 

 by following these birds and carefully watch- 

 ing the especial district they occupy ; for 

 individual trios often, if not habitually, re- 

 main witiiin a certain district of country, 

 for a greater or less length of time during 

 the season of oviposition. A trio of Cow- 



Another — More about Nomencla- 

 ture. — I beg to correct the very erroneous 

 statements made in your issue of Feb. 1878, 

 pp. 98, 99, on Dr. Brewer's authority. 

 Several of the sentences in the paragraph 

 are substiintially as well as literally incor- 

 rect, and the whole drift of the article con- 

 veys a wrong inqjression. So far from 

 Prof. Lilljeborg's system having " com- 

 pletely revolutionized modern ornithology," 

 there is now perhaps no ornithologist who 

 follows it in detail, though many of its fea- 

 tures (not necessarily the novel ones) are 

 acceptable. It is not true that "Dr. Cones, 

 in 1872, conformed his Key to this system, 

 and in the following year Prof. Baird a- 

 dopted it substantially, with Mr. Kidgway's 

 modifications ;" for 1 did not conform my 

 Key to anybody's system but my own ; and 

 the classification of birds in Prof. Baird's 

 work was prepared by me without the 

 slightest reference to Lilljeborg's system. 

 I also think that Messrs. Sclater and Sal- 

 vin would be surprised at the statement 

 that they follow Lilljeborg in their publica- 

 tions on American birds. ^, ^ 



P^LLIOTT COUESi 



Of the Blue Bird, White-bellied, Clifif", 

 and Barn Swallows, and a few other com- 

 moner species, the male arrives first in the 

 spring. Of a flock of about twenty Cedar 

 Birds, at least as many as fifteen or more 

 were males. 



