THE COWBIKDS. 



601 



aud did not keep the egg. I soon found several others and have t-^^«" "^ ^ _;' 

 specimens the past season. All but 2 of these were found in nests of the Bu lock s 

 Hooded, and Orchard Orioles. It is a curious fact that although fellow-breasted 

 Chats and Redwinged Blackbirds breed abundantly in places most frequented by 

 these Cowbirds, I htn-e but once found the latter's egg in a Chat's nest and never in 

 a Eedwing's, though I have looked in very many of them. P^^lj;'!- *^«J; f^.^^^f^ 

 the line should bJ drawn somewhere, and select their cous.ns, the Blackbxrds, as 

 coming within it. The Dwarf Cowbirds are not troubled by this scruple, however 

 Several of these parasitic eggs were found under interesting conditions. On s x 

 occasions I have found an egg of both Cowbirds in the same nest. ^ ^our of these 

 there were eggs of the rightful owner/ who was sitting. In the other two the Cow- 

 birdl eggs were alone in the nests, which were deserted. But I have known the 

 Hooded Oriole to set on an egg of C. robastus, which was on the point of hatching 

 when found. How its own disappeared I can not say. Once 2 eggs of C. rohnstus were- 

 found in a nest of the small Orchard Oriole (var. affims). Twice I have seen a broken 

 ec. of C. robustus under nests of Bullock's Oriole on which the owner was sitting, 

 larly in June a nest of the Hooded Oriole was found, with 4 eggs, and one of C. 

 robuJs all of which I removed, leaving the nest. Happening to pass b y i a few 

 days la er, I looked in, and to my surprise found 2 eggs of ,-o^««.,. which were 

 broken. These were so unlike that they were probably laid by difterent bird . btill 

 another egg, and the last, was laid in the same nest within ten days. But the most 

 ;Tmarkab!e instance was a nest of the snuUl Orchard Oriole, found June 20, con- 

 taining 3 eo-gs of C. robustus, while just beneath it was a whole egg of this parasite , 

 also a broken one of this and of the Dwarf Cowbird M. obscurus Two o the eggs 

 iu the nest were rotten. Tlie third, strange to say, contained a living embryo As 

 the nest was certainly deserted, I can only account for tliis by supposing that th. . 

 rotten ones were laid about the first week of June, when there was considerable ram, 

 .ud that the other was deposited soon after, since which time the weather had been 

 clear and very hot. On one occasion I found a female C. robustus hanging with a 

 out thread around its neck to a nest of the Bullock's Oriole. The nest contained one 

 younc. of this Cowbird, and it is probable that its parent alter depositing the egg 

 was e^ntangled in the thread on hurriedly leaving the nest, and there died It had 

 rppaxentlv been dead about two weeks. This case supports the view hat the eggs 

 or youncr of the owner are thrown out by the young parasite and not removed by 

 its parent, though I could find no trace of them beneath the nest. 



Among tbe species imposed on by tlie Bronzed Cowbird are the 

 following: 



Mih-ulus forficatus, Scissors-tailed Fly 



catcher. 

 Icterus auduboni, Audubon's Oriole. 

 Icterus cucuUaius, Hooded Oriole. 

 Icterus spurius, Orchard Oriole. 

 Icterus buUocki, Bullock's Oriole. 



Otber species undoubtedly will have to be added to tbis list. 



Tbe Orioles appear to be tbe especial victims of tbe Bronzed Cow- 

 bird, and among tbe.se Andubon's seem to be tbe worst sufterer In 

 nine sets of tbis species in tbe U. S. National Mnsenm collection tbere 

 are only two wbicb contain tbe normal number of eggs, 4. ibe other 

 seven all contain from 1 to 3 of tbese parasitic eggs, witb 1 or 2 ot 



*It would be interesting to know what would have become of the three species in 

 one nest, and had the latter been near the fort where I could have visited them 

 daily I should not have taken the eggs. It is probable, howe^•er that C. robusus 

 wol have disposed of the young Dwarf Cowbird as easily as of the young Orioles. 



CardinaUs cardinaUs cauicaudus, Gray- 

 tailed Cardinal. 



Guiraca ccerulea eurhjincha, Western Blue 

 Grosbeak. 



Icterus virens longicauda, Long -tailed 

 Chat. 



