42 



THE OOLOGIST 



and took a small set of two well mark- 

 ed eggs, slightly incubated. The nest 

 was small and loose and I conld see 

 through the bottom but not clearly 

 enough to discern the eggs. This is a 

 phase of character I have not before 

 noticed in the Hawks, but in these two 

 cases with Red-tails and in four cases 

 with Swainson's Hawk this season, I 

 found the birds deserted the nests I had 

 climbed that contained no eggs. In 

 the one case with the Swainson's Hawk 

 I found a nest complctfi but did not 

 climb. A few days after 1 called round 

 for this set and on climbing found one 

 egg. As the nest was where it could 

 be seen for over a mile in the top of a 

 dead willow 1 took this egg, but return- 

 ing next week found the nest deserted. 

 I then drove over the school section 

 and examined all the bluffs and in a 

 small willow bush found Mrs. Swain- 

 son trying to incubate two more eggs, 

 which I knew by their resemblance to 

 be the other eggs of the set, I having 

 already taken the first. On this oc- 

 casion sh3 hail se'zed upon a partly 

 built Crow's nost, flattened it out and 

 depo,sited the two eggs in it. 



On the 18th of June I took my last 

 set of Krider'R for the season. This 

 was a second set and strongly resem- 

 bled the first one. The nest was small 

 in a tall oak baside a ravine about one 

 mile distant from where I took the first 

 set and contained two eggs nicely 

 marked. This nest was newly built 

 like most of the others by the birds and 

 was unusually deep, the cup being 

 nearly 6 inches in depth and 7 in diam- 

 eter. Both male and female birds were 

 quite bold and seemed to resent my 

 robbing their second nest. Whether 

 they built a third I don't know, but if 

 they did I did not find it as my horse 

 hurt his feet shortly after while away 

 after Loon's eggs, and I had to leave 

 the field for the season. 



Chris. P. Forge, 

 Carman, Manitoba. 



Some Winter Birds of a Country 

 Farm-yard. 



Ruffed Grouse, Bonasa umbellus. A 

 few cf these beautiful game birds are 

 seen during the winter budding in ap- 

 ple trees near our yard. 



Downy Woodpecker, Bryobates pub- 

 escens. Quite plenty in shade trees in 

 our yard on pleasant days during the 

 entire winter. 



Blue Jay, Cyanociila crisiaia. Very 

 abundant. A quite large flock makes 

 daily visits to our yard in search of 

 food. 



Pine Grosbeak, Pinicola emicleator. 

 Quite abundant but more so as spring 

 approa^-hes. They come in flocks to 

 the maples in our yard and feed on the 

 buds. 



Amer'can Go'dfinch, Spinus iristis. 

 Flocks of this species alight in the trees 

 in our yard quite often during the win- 

 ter. In their winter plumage they are 

 very plain looking birds. 



English Sparrow, Passer domesticus. 

 An occasional straggler finds his way 

 to our yard. I cau;f,ht one in my hands 

 that flew into our shed to get out of the 

 storm. 



Snowflake, Plectrophenax nivalis. 

 Very largo flocks can be seen from our 

 yard skimming over the fields and pas- 

 ture and a few come to our yard occss- 

 ionly. 



Song Sparrow, Mclospiza fasciata. 

 As spring approaches we are tilled with 

 gladness by the sweet song of this spar- 

 row returning to his summer home, 

 although a few remain here nearly the 

 whole year. 



Northern Shrike, Lanius borealis. 

 One of these butchers is an cccasiooal 

 visitant to trees in our yard during the 

 winter. 



Brown Creeper, Certhia familiaris 

 americana. These interesting little 

 birds are winter visitants to our farm 

 yard shade trees, searching for food 

 under the rough bark of the maples 

 and butternuts. 



