THE OSPREY. 



An 1 11 Listrcriteri \/[ agazine of Hopular Ornithology. 



Pahlis>)e(i [S/Ionthly. 



X'lll.lMK 1\'. 



JUNE, 1900. 



NUMBKK 10. 



Original and Selected Articles. 



BIRDS OF the: road.— VI. NESTING TIME. 

 By Paui, BarTSCH, Washington, D. C. 



What a bu.s_v time this month of May has been 

 among-st the birds, — a time of bustling- activity, 

 — of restless energy-, when all, obedient to a com- 

 mon law moved northward, homeward to the 

 place where they had fixed their nest a year ago; 

 or where they had awakened to the pleasures of 

 life and beheld for the first time the glorious 

 light of day. Onward, homeward, northward 

 was the password, and onward they did move. 

 Day after day we noted new arrivals, and da}' 

 after day we found that some who had voiced 

 thiir presence the day before had taken their 

 n )tes with them, and their sweet song's will 

 linger in memory only, until another 3'ear when 

 again they will with renewed vigor pursue a 

 parallel course; for in fall they are mute or 

 almost so, and many of the brilliant singers 

 which made the v/oods resound with songs of 

 love, return quietly and silently to their southern 

 winter home. 



Night after night we heard train after train 

 of these little songers pas.s rapidly over the cit^' 

 bound for the north, anmruncing their pas- 

 sag'e only by an occasional note, perhaps the 

 order of the leader and many a moonlight night 

 we saw tlocks of tliem, as they passed fair Luna's 

 shining face. 



Often on these moonlight nights we heard 

 some bird, perchance a dreamer, recite his little 

 lay in sweetly quiet tones, and often too, at 

 this season. Catbirds, Brown Thrashers and the 

 Chat in particular forgot the hour of day and 

 sang as merrily as when Old Sol held sway. I 

 love these bursts of melody — when all is quiet, 

 and even the leaves seemed hushed. A serenade 

 at love's own door, full of promise and of hope. 



In the mean time one by one of our familiar 

 birds of summer have returned, and many of 

 them indeed have long since been busily intent 

 upon a home construction. 



The Phoebe has placed its cosy, lichen- 

 stuccoed nest ag-ainst a sheltering clifl', secure 

 from harm. What a master-piece of architec- 

 ture is this home of mud and straw, and softest 

 downy moss, fitted so snugiy ag-ainst yonder 

 rock upon that tiny shelf. Concealed most 



deftly by its garriture of mossy green and lichen 

 gray. We climbed up to it, and within its soft 

 deep cup, lay four, pure white eggs save for a 

 few faint dots of richest brown, which vainly 

 would have encircled the larger end. We gazed 

 upon these treasures and wished the birds which 

 moved about rather uneasily success at house- 

 keeping-. Leciving them to their duties it 

 seemed as if we heard Eowell say: — 



''lis a wee sad colored thing 

 As shy and secret as a maid, 

 That, ere inchoirthe robin sings 

 Pipes its own notes Ijke one afar 

 It seems fain promptejj to report, 

 The story of some aacient ill 

 But Phoebe! PhoebeT sadly sweet, 

 Is all it says, and then is still." 



We returned to this nest on the 27th, and 

 found all but one of the young gone, and this 

 too, joined its nest-mates after posing for the 

 picture which we are pleased to reproduce. 



The end of May finds most of our birds intent 

 upon domestic duties, many in fact are already 

 leading- their birdlings about, teaching them the 

 A. B. C. of every day existence. 



Since it pleased the senior editor of the 

 OSPKKV to puV)lish a photograph of mj' present 

 quarters and its surroundings I shall devote a 

 chapter to the birds of the place. "The Home of 

 the Birds," is a well chosen title for the picture, 

 for I believe that there are few places of such 

 circumscribed area which can boast of a greater 

 avian population. 



Mr. Flicker was the first one to set to house- 

 keeping-; at least, he cliose the dead limb which 

 projects ft-om one side of the elm standing 

 immediately outside of our fence, fully two 

 months ago. I have not seen his 3'oung, and 

 am .somewhat surprised at this. The Robin, 

 though less prompt, has led his little ones from 

 their mud-walled home to the spring where 

 cooling waters flow, and the Catbirds have built 

 and rebuilt, two of the three pairs being so 

 unfortunate as to have their household rifled 

 bv some thoughtless boys, who al.so overturned 

 a nest of the Yellow Warbler, and emptied it of 



