58 



THE OOLOGIST 



very thin with turpentine. The grain 

 of the wood shows nicely and the 

 rough finish is mucli more artistic 

 than to have the boards plained and 

 they harmonize with the bark of the 

 branches on which some of the nests 

 are placed. 



For the ground nests I make little 

 wire baskets and fasten them to the 

 little board mounts. The nests which 

 are on a piece of the branch are fas- 

 tened by putting a screw up through 

 the bottom of the mount and into the 

 branch, thus fastening the nest secure- 

 ly to the mount. 



For Vireos nests and others that 

 are in a forked branch I put a stand- 

 ard on one side or in a corner of the 

 amount and making a hole in the top 

 of the standard fit the end of the 

 branch into the pole in the standard. 

 Several Hummingbirds nests can be 

 mounted on one board by using stand- 

 ards. 



The accompanying photographs 

 shows one of the Warbler drawers in 

 my cabinet. Reading from left to 

 right the nests and sets are Golden- 

 winged Warbler (2), Black-throated 

 Blue Warbler (2), Magnolia Warbler 

 (2) ; Second row, all Cerulean Warb- 

 ler; third row, Cerulean Warbler (4). 

 Northern Water Thrush, Blackburnian 

 Warbler; fourth row, Mourning Warb- 

 ler, Canadian Warbler and Black- 

 throated Green Warbler (4). 



Verdi Burtch. 



Collecting Birds' Nests. 

 There is nothing that enhances the 

 value of a collection of eggs more than 

 having the accompanying nests of the 

 various species. The greatest objec- 

 tion to the formation of a collection 

 of nests is the fact that they are as a 

 rule bulky or I am sure there would 

 be more collectors who would make it 

 a rule to obtain for their private col- 

 lection at least one nest of each spe- 

 cies. In collecting nests it is always 



desirable to secure the nest "in situ". 

 By in situ is meant the procuring of 

 the nest attached to the limb of the 

 tree or any object on which the nest 

 rests. Even the larger nests can quite 

 often be secured "in situ" if one has 

 the patience and time and means of 

 conveyance for securing same. I se- 

 sured my first of the larger nests, a 

 crow's, after probably three hours' 

 work. It was some thirty feet up in 

 an oak and about % of a mile from 

 my home, but with a common hand 

 saw and a rope to let it down with I 

 secured the most interesting speci- 

 men, at least so to my visitors, that 

 I had at that time. With certain sit- 

 uations you may have some difficultj'. 

 In one instance, I wanted a phoebe's 

 nest showing the method of fastening 

 to the side of a vertical surface. I 

 found a nest thus attached on the side 

 of a wooden beam under a low bridge. 

 The beam was about a foot wide and 

 two inches thick but I got the nest as 

 originally fastened and also about a 

 square foot of bridge after bringing 

 the hand saw into play. I have also 

 had difficulty in securing a nest of the 

 green heron; the only nests of these 

 birds I have found were in hawthorne 

 tangles and I have as yet to secure 

 one of these frail structures in pre- 

 sentable condition. 



All birds have nests; even if the 

 eggs are laid on the bare ground the 

 spot where the eggs rest is the nest. 

 To show that the species nests on the 

 ground ,the soil, sand or gravel on 

 which the eggs were deposited can, 

 with a little care, be transferred to a 

 shallow box of a size varying with the 

 dimensions of the nest; the eggs after 

 preparation being placed in situation 

 as when found. A trowel or spade is 

 necessary in getting these ground 

 nests. If you live near the ocean, 

 where, as in the case with certain 

 ocean birds whose eggs are deposited 

 on rocks, it is, of course, impossible 



