THE OOLOGIST 



205 



a protection against inclement 

 weather. The dummies are also oc- 

 cupied sometimes by rats, mice, are 

 various small reptiles. I have very 

 frequently been startled by reaching 

 into a nest with the expectation of 

 taking a set of eggs, and instead pull- 

 ing out a ten inch lizard. 



A full set of eggs is from four to 

 seven, most commonly five. The 

 ground color is creamy white, which 

 is usually hidden by the heavy spots 

 of reddish brown or salmon. The 

 average measurements in inches are 

 .95 X .65. 



One nest of the Cactus Wren found 

 by myself this year was the most 

 unique in several respects of any of 

 the hundreds that I have examined. 

 It was situated nearly fifteen feet from 

 the ground at the end of a live oak 

 bough. It was composed of thick sage 

 stems and fresh green grasses, and 

 was placed in a vertical position with 

 the entrance directly at the top, be- 

 ing very shallow and open as com- 

 pared with the usual type. From the 

 ground below it had all the ear-marks 

 of a Shrike's nest. On reaching in I 

 pulled out a small egg measuring but 

 .50 X .35 inches, and then four very 

 beautiful but normally sized eggs. 

 This is the first and only set with a 

 runt egg of this species that I have 

 ever found, and it is one of the most 

 treasured in my collection. 



The smaller relatives of Heleodytes 

 far outshine him in vocal ability. His 

 only note seems to be a low hoarse 

 "chuck-chuck-chuck," seldom uttered. 



Grubs, worms and small insects 

 make up the Cactus Wren's diet, with 

 such few vegetable substances as may 

 be found in the dry regions where he 

 makes his home. 

 Los Angeles, Cal. D. 1. Shepardson. 



A Soldier Ornithololgist 



In answer to your letter of the 19th, 



will say that I will be glad to give the 

 Oologist all the notes that I can from 

 this location, but my notes from this 

 part of the state only go back to about 

 May 10, 1916, when the militia was 

 called out, our state is largest in the 

 Union and one can be well acquainted 

 with the birds from one portion of the 

 state and unacquainted with them from 

 another part. 



Arriving in Hot Wells, Tex., which 

 was our first place of duty after leav- 

 ing San Antonia, Texas we hit a coun- 

 try that was of cactus, sage and sand, 

 and no trees, the birds that I found to 

 be the mmost common were the Wliite 

 necked Raven, Scaled, Partridge 

 Texas Night Hawk, Curved-billed 

 Thrasher, Desert Spr, Oven Bird, Road 

 Runners, Hooded Oriole, and Cow 

 Bird, the Oven Bird proved to be the 

 most common, its nest and eggs could 

 be found in nearly every Soto cactus 

 on the desert. I have found from 3 to 

 S nests of this bird in one cactus, the 

 Road Runner was also quite common 

 and several nests were observed in 

 the vicinity of our camps, the Raven 

 was quite plentiful and several nests 

 of this bird was found before I was 

 aware of the fact that they were Ra- 

 vens and not Crows, after finding out 

 my mistake I went for a hunt and suc- 

 ceeded in collecting two sets but not 

 having any way to prepare them I 

 packed them up in oat meal and they 

 went through all right. 



On or about June 28th we were sent 

 to Bouquillas, Texas, some 250 miles 

 from Hot Wells, about 110 miles 

 from a railroad, and right on the 

 banks of the "Silvery Rio Grande" 

 and here the birds changed again, the 

 banks of the river are lined with rocky 

 cliffs and cannon sand, here I found 

 Cliff Swallows, Hawks, Owls and 2 

 paii-s of Eagles nesting, but 

 unluckily for me the Eagles picked 

 the Mexican side to nest in and a man 



