187 



THE OOLOGIST. 



The eggs of this set have larger spots 

 on them than the set of four. 



On the 25th of April, 1895, while out 

 collecting, a nest was found in a vine- 

 yard. It was built under a thistle, in a 

 slight depression in the ground and con- 

 tained four eggs; incubation begun. 



Another nest was found in the same 

 vineyard, with one egg in it. Return- 

 ing a few days later to collect the set, I 

 found that a harrow had been run over 

 the ground and had torn the nest up. 



Another nest was found containing 

 three young birds about one week old. 



Plain Titmouse, Partis inornatus. 

 This pretty little Titmouse is common 

 with us dui-ing the breeding season. 



They nest in holes in the large oak 

 trees that grow abundantly in the Santa 

 Clara valley, preferring a hole which 

 had been excavated by a Woodpecker 

 or Flicker. 



The eggs, which are laid in early Ap- 

 ril, are from four to eight in number, 

 may be pure white or white, thickly 

 spotted with minute pink spots. 



Last year a nest was found on the 

 15th of April, in which was four fresh 

 eggs. These eggs were taken and on 

 returning two days later two more eggs 

 were taken from the nest. Three days 

 later three more eggs were taken, 

 whereupon the bird decided to quit. 



This nest was built at the bottom of a 

 large hole in a white oak tree, ten feet 

 from the ground and was made of string, 

 feathers, bark strips, dry grass and 

 tow. 



Five of these eggs were pure white, 

 the other four being speckled with min- 

 ute pink spots. 



Another nest was found on the 6th of 

 May, but as we had no hatchet with us 

 we could not get into it. This nest was 

 built in a small hole on the upper side 

 of a live oak limb twenty feet up. 



I examined three nests this year, sets 

 of incubated eggs being taken from two 

 of them. Both of these nests were found 



on the 12th of April, 1895. The first 

 was built in a post oak tree, in an old 

 Flicker's nest, six feet from the ground 

 and contained six eggs. 



This bird was on the nest and would 

 not leave it until we began to enlarge 

 the hole. 



These eggs are white, spotted with 

 little pink spots. 



The other nest was built in a hole on 

 the under side of a white oak limb and 

 eight pure white eggs were taken from 

 it. 



The last nest of the season was found 

 on the 19th of April and was "plumb 

 full" of young birds. I did not stop to 

 see how many. 



These birds sit very close on the nest, 

 while incubating, and when disturbed 

 utter a note that sounds like the mew- 

 ing of a cat. 



Wm. L. Atkinson, 

 Santa Clara, Cal. 



Accidental Deaths of Birds- 



After reading the article in the Feb- 

 ruary OoLOGiST, by Mr. Harry C. Lillie, 

 on "Desti'uction of Birds," I thought I 

 would add to it a few items of ray own 

 observation and some others of which I 

 have seen notice. 



An English Sparrow built its nest in 

 the corner of a roof and its foot becom- 

 ing entangled in a piece of twine in 

 nest, it hung there in full view from tlie 

 street until death ended its sulYering. 



In May, 1894, I climbed to a cavity 

 that for years had been used as a nest- 

 ing site by a pair of Sparrow Hawks. 

 The tree was partly split by lightning 

 and on reaching the nest I found a splin- 

 ter had fallen and blocked the entrance 

 leaving an opening on each side. Re- 

 moving this, I found the skull and part 

 of the skeleton of a hawk amongst the 

 debris at bottom of the hole, and exam- 

 ining skull I found it to be that of an 

 adult. The bird had evidently been im- 

 prisoned and starved to death. Several 



