•28 



ORNITHOLOGIST 



[Vul. 16-No. 2 



An Unexpected Fall. 



A naturalist's life is full of advi-utuii's, 

 some aiiiusiny, some by no means so, and 

 some amusing to everybody but the one liaving 

 them. About everybody knows that our wild 

 plum tree (Pniniis amtricana. Marsh) is tliickly 

 covered with thorns, some of them more or 

 less branching, and they may also know that 

 the dead branches are apt to be brittle. Be- 

 cause of its thorny character this tree is a 

 favorite nesting place for a number of species 

 of birds, among which are tlie Great Northern 

 Shrike (Laiiiiix 'loccoij.s-, Vieill) wliicli liangs its 

 "game" upon these thorns as a butcher hangs 

 up meat; the Black-bille<l Cuckoo (Cocryzus 

 erythropldlialinus,Vfi]ii. ) and the Mourning Dove 

 (Zenaifliira macroura, Linn.). Well, the adven- 

 ture I have to relate is connected with the last 

 named species. 



Some sixty rods from my house a large 

 branching wild plum tree leans out over Point 

 Creek. One day 1 spied a Mourning Dove's 

 nest some twelve feet up in thi.s tree and de- 

 termined to examine it, so I clambered up 

 throiigli those thorny branches which sharply 

 and continuously reminded me of tlieir ])res- 

 ence, — still I took my own time ingoinguji. I 

 reached the nest safely and was looking at the 

 eggs when suddenly the branch upon which I 

 was standing broke with a crash, and down I 

 went, the thorns pricking and scratching me 

 until I had passed the lowest Ijranch, after 

 which I speedily descended feet foremost into 

 the swift moving but at this point shallow 

 waters of Point Creek, a fountain of water 

 rising about me nearly level with my head. 

 To add to my discomfiture I soon heard the 

 loud, lioarse laugh nf he who was then my 

 next door neighbor, who was lishing some 

 fifteen rods below. lie told mo afterwards 

 that he waited until he saw I was notserion.sly 

 hurt befoie laughing, but when he did begin 

 he made things ring for some distance around, 

 and it was some time before I heard the last 

 of that tumble. Wilfred A. Jimllicrloii. 



Kiichesti-r. Mii-h. 



Late Nesting of the Wood Pewee. 



On August :!, l.'!i)0, I found a nest of the 

 Wood Pewee, containing three young birds 

 that were just hatched, which I think is the 



latest nesting of this .species that has ever 

 come under my observation. The nest was 

 situated on a limb of an apple ti'ee in my or- 

 chard near the house, where T had an abun- 

 dance of opportunity to observe them daily, 

 where they remained mitil long after all other 

 birds of their kind had dcjiarted for the .south, 

 apparently waiting for the young bii-ds to 

 become fully fledged and strong enough to 

 stand the journey of migration. 



James 11. I'tirdij. 

 I'lvmontli, Wayne Co.. Mich.. .I;iii. 'Jx, Mi'.n. 



New Publications. 



Messrs. II. Y. Benedict and Charles D. 

 Oldright of Austin, Texas, are engaged in the 

 preparation of a complete catalogue of the 

 birds of Texas. This work is much more 

 ditficult than perhaps any other state catalogue, 

 not only by reason of the greater area of the 

 territory, but also because of its varied and 

 peculiar topographic asjiect conjoined with its 

 intermediate geograi)l)ical jiosition with re- 

 spect to eastern and wcstem, tro])ical and 

 nearctic, littoral, campestrian and even aljiine 

 fauna;. The literatuie of the s- object is 

 rather scanty and some of the records are 

 questionable. 



A number of the ornithologists of Texas 

 have promised lists of their localities and full 

 notes. To make the work a complete success, 

 however, in showing our present knowledge of 

 the distribution of birds in Texas, the authors 

 need and most earnestly request the co-opera- 

 tion of every one who can furnish unpublished 

 information on the subject. 



The local lists at present published (of 

 about sixteen counties) leave several consider- 

 able gaiis particularly in the noitheast, the 

 extreme west and the ni>rthwest jiortions of 

 the state. 



We can imagine the mirthful glee of the 

 authors when they are tracing the lines of 

 "inosculation" of the habits of some slightly 

 marked varieties such as Melo.tplza fasclata 

 and M. f. iikiiiIiidh and that s])riglitly trio 

 JiDira liyeiualls. J. li. orcr/oiiH.s' and ,/. b. 

 siiiiifeldtil. 



The catalogue will be published during the 

 year 181I2, and will apjiear under the aus- 

 pices of the ITniversity of Texas. The au-_ 

 thors nia,y be addressed at the Hniversity, 

 Austin. 



