10 



THE OSPREY. 



the Ferrug-inous. However, this partic- 

 ular set, being- absolutely' that of the lat- 

 ter, has its certain value in a series as 

 illustrating- one extreme of measurement. 

 As usual with the Raptores^ the eggs 

 of this species exhibit the greatest diver- 

 sitv of marking-. The ground color is 

 nearly always a dirty white, occasionally 

 verging upon clay, and the shell is 

 coarsely granulated and very tough. Oc- 

 casionallv one or more in a set is nearly 

 immaculate, or shows only faint shell 

 marking-s of lilac or pale brown, Init the 

 majority are boldlv blotclu-dor ])lentifully 



OUIVEK CKEEK, N^AK 



sprinkled or streaked with brick red, lilac, 

 pale chocolate or umber brown, some- 

 times indiscriminately scattered over the 

 surface, and sometimes heaviest at one 

 end, and the heaviest marking is as often 

 at the small end as otherwise. It is rare 

 to find a set where the marking is fairly 

 uniform throughout the set, and I took 

 but one such this season, now in the col- 

 lection of C. W. Crandall, of Woodside, 

 N. Y. 

 *See Frontispiece. 



Why not or_£ranize an Illimjis ornitholog-ical 

 association? Michig-an, California and other 

 States liave tliriviiif,'' clubs. Hon. K. M. Barnes. 

 W. S. Cobleiyh and others write in heart}- sym- 

 pathy with the movement. 



Prof. Silloway will follow with other papers 

 dealing- more technically with the birds of the 

 Ouiver Lake reg-ion. Illustrations with this 

 article are kindly furnished by Dr. Forbes, of 

 the State Labratory of Natural History. 



Rambles Around Ouiver Lake, 



BY P. M. SILLOWAY, HOODHOUSE, ILL. 

 (First paper — A foot in Flag Lake.) 



QUIVER LAKE is situated some two 

 miles north of Havana, 111., open- 

 ing- into the Illinois river on the 

 eastern side. The lake is interesting 

 itself chiefly to lovers of piscatorial sport, 

 but to the ardent ornithologist it is inter- 

 esting as the base of operations and gate- 

 way to a numl)er of swamp-lakes afford- 

 ing rich opportunities for the study of the 

 water birds. Lying northwest of the lake 



and partly be- 

 tween the lake 

 and the river 

 are se\-eral 

 swamp -lakes 

 known as Dog- 

 fish Lake, Duck 

 Lake (evident- 

 ly because 

 there are no 

 ducks found in 

 its borders, ) 

 Mud Lake 

 (well named) 

 (jrass Lake 

 Punkin Patch, 

 and others, all 

 enriching a 

 natural resort 

 for species 

 which dwell in 

 LAKE. or near the 



water. Across the river, on the western 

 side, are the Spoon River vallev (well- 

 known to naturalists through the genial 

 reminiscences of Dr. Strode), Seebe's 

 Lake, Flag Lake, and Thompson's Lake, 

 and prolific in characteristic animal and 

 plant life. The recently established 

 biological station of the University of 

 Illinois on Ouiver Lake has done much 

 to bring this region before the attention 

 of Illinois naturalists, and readers of an 

 Illinois ornithological magazine may be 

 interested in some rambling notes based 

 on experiences in that region. 



First and always my mind reverts to 

 Flag Lake, which lies across the river 

 from the point or "cut-off" separating 

 Ouiver Lake proper from the river. We 

 shall fare better by rowing across the 

 river, leaving our skiff securely tied, lest 

 the waves from a passing steamer wash 

 it beyond our reach, and going a-foot, 



