326 



THE OOLOGIS'T 



No. 221, American Coot (Fulica 

 americana). Now a very rare breed- 

 er within tliis county. Perliaps not 

 breeding laere now at all. Formerly 

 common as a breeder. 



No. 261, Ui)land Plover (Bartramia 

 longicaida). Now a very rare breed- 

 er here. 



No. 263, Si)otted Sandi)ii)er (Actitis 

 macularius). Now a very rare breed- 

 er here. 



No. 27;:!, Killdeer (Oxyechns vocifer- 

 us). Not nearly so common a breed- 

 er as formerly, now seldom seen. 



No. oOO, Rufl'led Grouse (Bonasa um- 

 bellus umbellus). I have a number o1 

 sets of eggs of this bird taken within 

 the county since 1S90, one set 1 took 

 myself. This si)ecies does not seem 

 to increase or decrease here percep- 

 tibly. 



No. 30.5, Prairie Hen (Tympanuchus 

 americanus americanus). This bird is 

 almost gone here. There are not over 

 a dozen breeding pairs left in the 

 county. In May 1908, I received the 

 eggs from three nests that had to be 

 destroyed in plowing up the fields. 

 These are the last eggs and nests of 

 which I have any personal knowledge 



No. 310-a, Wild Turkey (Meleagris 

 gallai)avo silvestris). Now entirely 

 extinct within the county. 



No. 32.'), Turkey Vulture (Cathartes 

 aura sei)tentrionalis). A few pairs 

 regularly breed within the county and 

 have so done for a number of years. 

 Always as far as I laiow in huge hol- 

 low trees. 



No. 333, Coopers Hawk (Accii)iter 

 coo])eri). Our commonest breeding 

 hawk. Many now rest with us. 



No. 337, Red tailed Hawk (Buteo 

 borealis borealis). Now a rare breed- 

 er here, formerly very common as 

 such. 



No. 339, Red Shouldered Hawk (Bu- 

 teo lineatus lineatus). Now next to 

 the Coopers Hawk our most common 



breeding hawk. Confined to the River 

 bottoms. 



No. 36.5, Barn Owl (Aluco pratinco- 

 la). One nest with five half grown 

 young found and another with two 

 half grown young. The latter taken 

 and raised and kept in confinement 

 here in Lacon for over a year, then 

 one died and one was released. These 

 are the only nests I know of ever hav- 

 ing been found in the county. 



No. 366, Long Eared Owl (Asio Wil- 

 sonianus). Not an uncommon breeder 

 here now. 



No. 373, Screech Owl (Otus asio 

 asio). Our most common breeding 

 Owl. 



No. 37.5, Great Horned Owl (Bubo 

 virginianus virginianus). Not an un- 

 common breeder here. Might be call- 

 ed common, how it came to be omit- 

 ted from my previous list I am unable 

 to understand. 



No. 393, Hairy Woodpecker (Dryo- 

 bates villosus villosus). Now a very 

 rare breeder here owing to the fact of 

 the English Sparrow appropriating 

 almost every nest hole as soon as the 

 same is excavated. I once saw one of 

 these sparrows enter the home of one 

 of these Woodpeclvers and take a new- 

 ly hatched bird out in its bill, and flut- 

 ter tor an instant over the water (the 

 nest was dug into a dead willow snag 

 standing in the overflowed Illinois 

 River bottoms) and drop the young 

 bird into the water to drown. It then 

 returned into the nest and soon aj)- 

 l)eared with another newly hatched 

 woodpecker in its bill. As it fluttered 

 over the water for an instant my gun 

 cracked and the sparrow died. I firm- 

 ly believe this sparrow will ultimately 

 cause the Hairy Woodpecker to be- 

 come extinct in all places where the 

 sparrow is permitted to remain during 

 the breeding season. 



No. 409, Red bellied Woodpecker 

 (Centurus Carolinus). Since the Chi- 



