26 



ORNITHOLOGIST 



[Vul. 16-No. 



Eggs of the Great Northern Diver. 



Last Slimmer 1 collected two sets of o<;}js of 

 tlie (ireat Noitliern Diver. While e.xamiiiiiij; 

 tliem I noticed that one egg was considerably 

 darker and had more spots than the other egg 

 of the same set. Also that it was longer and 

 more slender than the other. I remarked this 

 to our old guide, who can easily remember the 

 time when that region (Ontario, Canada) was 

 a wilderness, and whose sharp eye notliing es- 

 capes, and was told by him that in every set 

 of Loon's eggs one egg was darker than the 

 otlier, and tliat the dark egg always contained 

 a male bird ai;d tlie light egg a female bird. 

 He said tliat this was his experience with 

 every set of Loon's eggs he had ever observed. 

 'J'here is no doubt that lie has observed a good 

 many in his time. Ujjon looking at the other 

 set I noticed the same thing. Is there any- 

 thing in this theory ? II. L. lieinJcl. 



[Did the sharp-eyed old guide camp out by 

 every set of Loon's eggs lie found and watch 

 them hatch? If not bow did he get liis 

 "facts'"? — /. P. N.] 



Nesting of the Black Rail at Raleigh, 

 N. C. 



On May il. 1S!»0, a colored boy, wlio with his 

 fatlier had been nujwing hay in tlie marsliy 

 meadows near Italeigh, and who not infre- 

 quently brought us rice field m\t:e(Oryz(iiiiys pa- 

 hmtrix) and sometimes a set of King liail, 

 brought us two eggs which he said lie took 

 from a nest he mowed into before seeing it. 

 There were five eggs in the nest but three 

 were broken and only two uninjured. 



The nest was on the ground in the wet 

 meadow, and was made of grass, something 

 like a rat's nest, he said. On ((uestiouing him 

 as to whether he saw any bird, he said there 

 was a small bird about the size of a Catbird 

 running about on the ground near the nest and 

 making a fuss. The bird was like the big 

 Marsh liens (King Kail) except in size and be- 

 ing blackisli in color. These eggs were witli 

 the above information submitted to ('apt. C. 

 E. Bendire, United States Natural Museum, 

 who informed us there could be little doubt 

 tliey were eggs of the Black Kail (Purziiud 

 juiiuilcenfia). 



The nest was in a wet meadow interspersed 

 with pools of water, anil one third or more 

 always covered with wiitcr, the water being- 



over a foot deep in a considerable jjortion of 

 it. The meadow is edged by thickets and 

 marsh on one side and altogether was well 

 adapted for IJails and other marsh birds. 



<'. S. liillliUlJ. 

 Raleigli. N- C. 



Hawks' Nests. 



I have read with great interest the article in 

 the .Tanuary number of the O. * O. by ,J. I'. N. 

 on the series of Ked-shouldered Hawk, which 

 there he lias so finely described: and whenever 

 I read an article on this family of birds it 

 arouses an interest in me, as I have had quite 

 an experience in collecting eggs of this species, 

 and also of the Ked-tail and Cooper's Hawk, 

 and so perhaps a little of my exjierience .along 

 with the rest would ilo no harm. 



It hi\s often occurred to nie how it could be 

 possible for a bird to become so attached to 

 its old home. I know of a single jiair of Ked- 

 tail Hawks near my old home in the coiniti'y 

 where for eight years in succession I have 

 taken from them a set of eg^s, and from three 

 out of the eight nests I took two sets each 

 year, making a total of eleven sets in eight 

 years, .and still they stick to the same piece of 

 woods, and in no case so far have they varied 

 more than ,a (piarter of a mile in the localion 

 of their nests. 



I cannot help but exjiect each year when I 

 visit the woods to find that they have left for 

 some other jilace where they can raise their 

 brood in peace, but of late I have made it a 

 practice to take one set only from them during 

 a season, and let them raise the second in 

 peace. 



During my short experience in collecting 

 eggs I have taken upwards of fifty sets of the 

 three above-named species, and sixty jier cent 

 of that number have been eggs of the I!ed- 

 shouldered Hawk. 



On April 17, 18!)0, I was out collecting and 

 took six sets of the lied-shouldered Hawk. 

 Four sets contained four eggs each, and two 

 contained three. My experience in years past 

 has been that three is the full complement of 

 a set, but of last season's collecting nearly all 

 contained four. Tbeie surely is, as Mr. Norris 

 says, a striking resemblance in the eggs laid 

 by the same pair of birds, year after year, and 

 if I am successful during the coming season 

 will try to add my mite with the rest to find 

 out more and more about our birds. 



//. ir. 7j(c»-.<. 



Kriilf^eimrt. Conii. 



