74 



THE OOLOGIST. 



they are sometimes difficult to find, and 

 it is likely that there may have been 

 three or four times as many, as all the 

 time I could give to searching for nests 

 was about two to three hours a week. 

 The beautiful Blue bird was not as 

 numerous as usual. Four, nests were 

 found, one of which was destroyed by 

 a storm, leaving about twelve birds. 

 Chipping birds, six nests, at an average 

 of three each, eighteen birds, many 

 more of these nests were not found. 

 Barn Swallows, two nests of eight 

 birds. Chimney swallows, two nests, 

 one destroyed by rain, say Ihree birds. 

 The melodious Wood Thrush had four 

 nests, most appeared to come off safe. 

 As they usually have four eggs it is safe 

 to set them down at least twelve birds. 

 Common house Wren had also four 

 nests, with probably five birds each, 

 making twenty more. Ground or grass 

 Sparrows two nests, jDerhaps eight birds. 

 Rose Breasted Grosbeak three nests, 

 probably nine birds or more. Phoebe 

 bird one,f our young ones. Wood Pewee, 

 one, four birds came ofi". Of several spe- 

 cies of Warblers four nests, perhaps 

 twelve birds. Orchard Orioles two 

 nests, seven birds, Baltimore Orioles 

 one, three birds. King-bird, two nests 

 seven birds. Cat-bird seven nests, not 

 less than twenty-five birds. Shore Snipe 

 one nest, three birds one egg left. One 

 Quails nest destroyed by weasel. Two 

 Fly-catchers, six birds, and two yellow- 

 birds one nest of which the young birds 

 are just ready to fly September 7th, 

 which, when they are out will make 

 eight birds more. Many birds have had 

 nests tiiat baffled my search. Of these 

 were the Brown Thrush, of which I 

 know there were several, I have usually 

 found two. The Chewink, or Ground 

 Robin, was another of which I found 

 none. Several of the Warbler and Fly- 

 catcher families were represented, but 

 nests not found. Bobolinks, Meadow 

 Larks, Cow birds, and Black-birds 

 were numerous. Cuckoos were also 



here. Doves, Field sparr ws and also a 

 small Owl was frequently heard. One 

 nest of Humming birds were hatched, 

 and the two young birds were seen fre- 

 quently with their parents in the garden. 

 Taking these figures as a basis of birds 

 knoAvn to leave their nests, we have 

 three hundred and sixty-one, (361) 

 young ones, but I am sure this does 

 not nvimber half the birds hatched. 

 Birds nests on the meadows, brook side 

 and woods were not easy to find, and 

 the little time I could give it did not 

 give a fair representation of numbers. 

 I tliink six or seven hundred birds 

 would be nearer the mark. But what 

 becomes of all these birds, they increase 

 at least three fold every year, yet their 

 numbers are reduced to about the same 

 by the following spring. Surely this is 

 a subject worth the naturalists atten- 

 tion. Is it possible that two-thirds of 

 all the little birds are killed by hawks, 

 or the giui, or do they die of disease, 

 inclemenency of the weather, or from 

 what cause '? When it is known that 

 many old birds come back to the same 

 nest for several years, the mortality 

 must be great cr their numbers would 

 soon increase more than they do. 



Benry Hales, 



The Migration of Birds. 



There is perhaps, no question in 

 ornithology more obscure than the Mi- 

 gration of Birds. The long flights they 

 take, and the imerring certainty with 

 which they wing their way between the 

 most distant places, arriving and depart- 

 ing at the same period year after year, 

 are points in the history of birds of pas- 

 sage as mysterious as the}' are interest- 

 ing. We Know that most migrants fly 

 after sundown, though many of them 

 select a moonlight night to cross the 

 Mediterranean. But that their meteor- 

 ological instinct is not unerring is proved 

 by the fact that thousands are every 

 year drowned in their flight over the 



