96 



ORNITHOLOGIST 



[Vol. 17-No. 6 



at Whitman, Mass., May 1. It contained 

 eight eggs. Again, on May 13, he found a set 

 of eight eggs. Tlie nest was made of nislies 

 and grass and was built so as to rise and fall 

 eighteen inches with the water. 



I have three litters of skunks at present, 

 one of nine, which is a large one. Lean beef 

 is the best meat for them, but I feed the old 

 ones most anything. I have taken five sets of 

 Red-shouldered and one of lled-tailed Hawks. 



A. E. Kihbe. 



" For Sale ; Motnted Animals. What I 

 are you retailing a cavalry regiment ? Not 

 re-tailing, but selling them, eh ? Wade. 



The Northhampton Daily Gazette reports 

 the finding of a Duck Hawk's nest on Mount 

 Tom, by two boys, who succeeded in climbing 

 oyer the ledge and getting the three eggs. 

 During the cold rain storm of the past week a 

 great many of the Warblers, mostly the Red- 

 start, have been found in barns and sheds and 

 a number have fiown into the houses and 

 acted as if they were cold. A number of 

 Scarlet Tanagers have been found dead. 



J. ir. Jackson. 



Belchertown, Mass. 



The Caspian Tern at llhodv Island. May 10, 

 I had the good fortune to kill a Caspian Tern. 



Claude Dumt. 

 Ocean View. 



[From Mr. Dunn's description there is no 

 doubt as to the identity. — Ei».] 



R. H.White, Jr., says, " My skunks are doing 

 finely. I have named the mother Violet. We 

 would not be surprised to see skunks univer- 

 sally installed as i>ets. They make good ones." 



The Observer, Portland, Conn., one of our 

 valued exchanges, states that in two days a 

 gang of three men killed 110,89(5 caterpillars 

 and pupa; (Gypsy moth). We are very nuuli 

 ])leased to see such statements, but it is a 

 pity they did not knock out 104 more to make 

 120,000. By the way, how were they counted ? 



John C. Reynolds, 84 Clinton Place, Brook- 

 lyn, N. Y., asks '• What bird, domestic or 

 foreign is the swiftest on the wing, and what 

 distance can it make in a given time ? " Who 

 can answer this ? 



I found a Blue Gray Gnatcatcher's nest and 

 several Crow.s' nests at CofEeyville, Kan., May 

 21. Arthur McDole. ^ 



The Bulletin, of the American Museum of 

 Natural History, N. Y., Vol. Ill, No. 2, De- 

 cember, ISOl, contains articles on " NewSpecies 

 of Bat"; " New or Little Known Mammals of 

 B. A. and others," by J. A. Allen; "New 

 Species of Chipmunk, Weasel and Fox;" 

 "Notes on Owls and Skunks," by Edgar A. 

 Mearns ; "Color Paterns of the Upper Tail 

 Coverts in Colaptes Auratus" ; " Birds Observed 

 near Corpus Christi," by Frank M. Chapman ; 

 "Observations on Some Cretaceous Fossils 

 from Syria," by R. P. Whitfield ; "A Perfect 

 Broadside from Heavy Artillery." 



"Autobiographical Sketches and Personal 

 Recollections," by George T. Angel, president 

 of the American Humane Education Society, 

 contains a general outline of the writer's work 

 and is well worth reading. It can be had at 

 the nominal sum of ten cents to cover postage. 

 The publication of the Mass. S. of C. to A. 

 reaches us regularly and is quite interesting. 

 For particulars address 19 Milk street, 

 Boston. 



The Boston Commonwealth, weekly, 25 

 Bromlield street, a family paper, is one of 

 our valued exchanges. 



The Sportsman and Tourest, for May contains 

 several very interesting articles and an account 

 of a man swallowed l)y a whale and afterwards 

 rescued is quite novel. The regiUar subscrip- 

 tion rate is ^1.00 per annum. We have 

 arranged to furnish it with the O. & O. for 

 ^l.oO for both magazines for 1892 to who 

 have already subscriVted to the O. iV O., we 

 will send it for 75 cents. 



The American Naturalist is now published 

 by Binder & Kelly, 518 Union street, Phila- 

 delphia, Pa. 



Dear Sir, — Will you inform me in your next 

 issue, if posible, which are the swiftest flying 

 birds. A friend says the Golden P^agle and I 

 understand that the Canvas Back Duck is. 

 Which is right'.' I have looked in encyclo- 

 pasdias and natural histories but haven't been 

 able to find it. James B. B. Smith. 



1 St. James Terrace, Uoxbury, Mass. 



One day in early June, 1891, while I was 

 searching a small swamp near here, I flis- 

 covered a nest of the Summer Warbler. The 

 nest was situated in a ff»rk formed by four 

 upright twigs. After watching a few moments 

 I noticed the constructors of this little gem 

 busily engaged in putting on the finishing 

 touches. 



Three days later I returned in hopes of find- 

 ing the eggs but I saw neither the eggs nor 

 the birds; I went away disappointed but 

 returned a week later, hoping that the eggs 

 had been laid. Judge of my surprise then, to 

 see a Red-winged Blackbird's nest built in the 

 same folk. The nest which contained three 

 eggs was built directly over the Warbler's little 

 house ; the side of one being interwoven with 

 that of the other. 



Undoubtedly the Blackbird, with superior 

 size and strength, iiad driven the occupants of 

 this little summer home away, selfishly appro- 

 priating this favored site to themselves. 



7?. //. White, Jr. 

 Chestnnt Hill, Mass. 



Mr. James T. Clark, who for several years 

 was in our em]iloy as one of our taxidermists, 

 is no longer with us; we learn he is starting in 

 business for himself. We wish him success, 

 and while we hope to receive the patronage of 

 our custf>mers, we believe that any work done 

 by him will be as satisfactory as it has been 

 to us. 



