Jan. 1889.] 



AXD OOLOGIST. 



11 



Hen No. 2, May :^d, 7tli, 12th, ITth, 19th, 

 21st, 2:Jd, .June M. Total, 8. 



Hen Xo. 3, Mxy 8th, lOtli, 12th, 14th, l()th. 

 ISth, 2nth, 22d, 2oth, 27th, 80th, June 1st, :kl. 

 Gth, 8t]i. Total, 1"). 



Hen Xo. 4, May '.»th, 12th, 14th, Ifith, ISth. 

 21st, 2>]d, 25tli, 27th, 20th, 31st, .June 3d, .oth. 

 Total, 13. 



Hen Xo. .5, May l.")th, 17th, I'ltli, 21st, 24th, 

 2.'Jth, 27th, 2Vlth, 31st, .June 2d, 4th, 7th, Otli. 

 Total, 13. 



Hen Xo. (i, May lOth, 18th, 20th, 22d, 24th, 

 2fith, 28th, 3;)th, June 1st, 3d, f)th. Total. 11. 



All the ahove eggs have pei-fect shells, while 

 last year, out of nineteen eggs from tliree hens, 

 I had two which had imperfect shells, and 

 they had not the full thickness. I have learned 

 among other things the proper food required 

 for the formation of perfect shells. I do not, 

 however, in the present article, intend to com- 

 municate tht results of my experimental in- 

 vestigations in the matter of feeding. It is 

 knowledge which lias been the result of hard 

 work, and, in simple justice to myself, I think 

 I am riglit in reserving, at least for the pres- 

 ent, the information for which I have toiled. 



]V((t.s(>7i Bi.s/iop. 



[Two sets of eggs of this species are now 

 before me. They were both laid, in captivity, 

 by two of Mr. Bishop's birds, and may be thus 

 described : 



Set I. Ijaid by hen Xo. 2, on May 3, 7, 12, 

 17, 19, 21, 23, and June 3, 1888. Eight eggs, 

 ovate in .shape; ground color hazel, speckled 

 and spotted with chestnut. On most of the 

 eggs there are spots of a lighter tint than the 

 ground color, as if a portion of tlie latter had 

 been rubbed oil in these places: 1.74x1.24; 

 l.(iSxl.22; 1.64x1.24; 1.74x1.25; 1.04x1.27; 

 1.73x1.2'); 1.7.">xl.23; 1.72x1.2.5. 



Set II. Laid by hen Xo. 4, on May 9, 12. 14, 

 16, 18, 21, 23, 25, 27, 29, 31, .June 3, and 5. 

 Thirteen eggs, ovate, but less pointed tlian 

 SetXo. I. Ground color vinaceous-cinnamon, 

 spotted with chestnut: l.()(ixl.24; l..">9xl.28; 

 l.(ilxl.2'); 1.6)xl.21: 1.. 58x1. 2."); 1.60x1.25; 

 1.60x1.27; J.65xl.:^>2, 1.65x1.23; 1.60x1.27; 

 1.71x1.22; 1.69x1.25; 1.6ixl.l6. What makes 

 tliis .set especially interesting is the fact that 

 Bishop marked each egg in the order that 

 they were laid, as he removed them; and egg 

 Xo. 1 has the fewest markings on it, while the 

 spots gradually increase in number and size on 

 the others, so that egg Xo. 13 is the most heav- 

 ily marked of all. Xow, this is directly in op- 

 position to the geneially received theory that 

 the first hxid eggs in a set have the heaviest 



markings, while the last are tlie lightest 

 marked. But theories must yield to facts. 



Mr. Bishop is to be congratulated on his 

 wonderful success in getting these birds tt) lay 

 in captivity. His experiment would seem to 

 lead to tlie conclusion that they could be easily 

 domesticated. — J. P. N.] 



Wanderings. 



It was my good fortune, in the latter part of 

 February last, to spend a few days in the 

 sparsely populated section of Plymouth county, 

 Mass., my object being a raid upon the nests 

 of the Great Horned Owl. The trip proved 

 unsuccessful, although a set of eggs was taken 

 two weeks later by my camarade au pied, 

 from one of the nests visited, but from obser- 

 vations taken then, I was led to believe that 

 tlie locality would prove fruitful later on, when 

 the small birds made their appearance. 



Accordingly, about the first of June, in com- 

 pany with my friend, Mr. E. A. Lewis, I vis- 

 ited the place again, and spent about ten days 

 in thoroughly exploring the locality. 



We made our headquarters with Mr. M. V. 

 B. Douglass, at a farm-house, w^hich is situ- 

 ated on the banks of Half-way Pond, the 

 source of the Agawam River; and to his kind- 

 ness and advice, as to the lay of the land, was 

 due much of our success, although Mr. Lewis 

 was quite well acquainted. 



This pond, fed principally by springs, is lo- 

 cated nearly on the water-.shed between the 

 Atlantic Ocean and the Vineyard Sound. The 

 country about it, from its geological position, 

 being tlie end of the glacial territory of Massa- 

 chusetts, is much diversified by hills and val- 

 leys, water courses, and small ponds, and sit- 

 uated as it is, eleven miles from the railroad 

 terminus at Plymouth Rock, is very little set- 

 tled, and affords fine opportunity for the nest- 

 ing places of such birds as tend to avoid the 

 presence of man. In fact, the absence of the 

 more common birds, like the Brown Thrushes, 

 Blackbirds, etc., was particularly noticeable, 

 and but one or two Robins were seen during 

 the trip, their place being occupied by tlie 

 rarer Warblers, the Hawks, and the Owls. 



The principal objects of search were the 

 nests of the Blue yellow-back Warblers {Par- 

 tda americana), which are rarely, if ever, taken 

 within twenty-five miles of Boston, and it was 

 here that my first nest of this bird was seen. 



It was in the morning of our first trip, as we 

 were pushing our way througli the thick scrub 

 on a hillside, at the foot of wliich fiowed tlie 



