2 Massachusetts Audubon Society 



NOTES FROM THE MOOSE HILL BIRD SANCTUARY 

 By Harry George Higbee, Superintendent 



The Moose Hill Bird Sanctuary in Sharon continues to grow. More 

 than six hundred acres, comprising land under about a dozen private 

 ownerships, and varying in altitude from 240 to 540 feet, are now being 

 made use of by the Audubon Society in its experimental, educational and 

 protective work among the birds and other wild life. 



The interest and helpfulness of this work has been shown by our in- 

 creased patronage, about twenty-five hundred people having visited the 

 sanctuary so far this season. Over nine hundred of these, representing 

 seventy-nine cities and towns in Massachusetts and twenty-five localities 

 in ten other States, were registered during the month of May; while 

 several other States and Territories, as well as Ontario, Canada, England, 

 France and Japan, have since been represented by our visiting friends. 

 Among our distinguished guests have been Mr. T. Gilbert Pearson of 

 New York, President of the National Association of Audubon Societies, 

 Mrs. Mabel Osgood Wright of "Birdcraft Sanctuary," Fairfield, Conn., 

 Mr. Renkei Tsuda of the Japanese Embassy at Washington and Dr. 

 Toshii Takagi of Tokio, Japan. 



We have also had a busy season among the birds. The yellow- 

 breasted chat, prothonotary warbler, Brewster's warbler, grasshopper 

 sparrow and yellow-legs have this year been added to our Sanctuary list, 

 making a total of 133 species observed here. One hundred and seven 

 species have been noted so far this season. 



Our spring migration was varied and unusual ; a comparison of dates 

 of arrival with those of other years disclosing some interesting facts. On 

 the 29th of May, which might have been termed the height of the spring 

 migration for this year, sixty-four species were observed by the superin- 

 tendent in two and a half hours in the early morning, within a radius of 

 half a mile of the Sanctuary Headquarters, while on May 21st, sixty- 

 seven species were noted during the day. 



It has been a good year for our breeding birds. One hundred and 

 fifty-two nests, representing forty-two species, have been under obser- 

 vation during the season. This, however, is probably a small percentage 

 of the birds nesting here, as but little time is afforded for this work during 

 the breeding season. 



Tree swallows and house wrens have been unusually abundant in our 

 nesting-boxes. An increase of mourning doves has been noted, and they 

 are known to have bred close by. Black ducks, ruffed grouse, bob-whites 

 and woodcock have also been observed here in increasing numbers. Two 

 nests of woodcock were found, and several other pairs are known to have 

 nested here. In one instance eight of these birds were noted within half 

 a mile along the roadside, in the early evening. 



Hermit thrushes continue to haunt the grounds, several pairs having 

 bred in our secluded woodlands, while their wonderful twilight songs have 

 been heard continually from late March until early August. 



