Bird Migration in the Mississippi Valley. 17 



and Baltimore orioles, had also arrived. Also quite a small army of warblers 

 had come the rain, bringing the first redstart, magnolia, hemlock, black 

 poll and Nashville warblers; and at the same time the first yellow-throated 

 and blue-headed vireos were seen, also the first tanager. A great increase had 

 taken place in the kingbirds, chimney swifts, and least fly-catchers. Strange 

 that so much change should have taken place in the face of a north wind 

 and a very heavy rain storm ! 



May 11.— Night before was clear for the first time in more than two weeks; 

 wind northwest, and moderately strong; hard frost, and froze in lowlands. I 

 was in the woods from 6 a. m. to 8 a. m. Apparently no change whatever ; 

 birds scarce owing to cold, and I could not stay out until it was warmer. 

 Only noticeable thing seen was seventeen blue jays in one flock passing leis- 

 urely north through the tree tops. 



May 12. — Night before clear, with strong north wind, mercury 40 dgs. 

 The morning was beautiful, but chilly, was out all day and found bird life 

 quite abundant, but still far from full Summer numbers. 



May 13. — Night before cloudy, with north wind and mercury at 40 dgs. 

 The day was half cloudy until 2 p. m. when it began to rain, and continued 

 almost steadily until early the next morning. North wind and mercurv 

 at 43 dgs. 



May 14.— This morning it cleared o£E at 5:15, mercury at 40 dgs., with a 

 north wind still. No change of birds was apparent. The evening turned 

 out to be bright moonlight, with mercury at 48 dgs., and a south wind. 



May 16. — This day was clear with maximum temperature of 71 dgs. No 

 new arrivals were noted, and no increase perceptible in any, but decrease or 

 total absence of some told that the night's favorable opportunity had been 

 utilized. A decided decrease was apparent in all Hylocichlae. 



May 17. — Night before was moonlight, warm and clear with south wind. 

 Just sucli a night as birds most like for migrating. Yet, although some 

 movement was apparent, it was not great. 



May 18.— Night before cloudy with south wind, and from daybreak the 

 mercury rose rapidly. The day w\as hot, sultry and cloudy, with a strono- south 

 wind from 9 a. m. to 2:30 p. m. The thermometer marked 82 dgs. in spite of 

 the clouds. At 3 p. m., a regular cyclone of the Iowa kind advanced straight 

 toward us until it reached the brow of the hill a mile and a half west, when it 

 split and the two parts passed north and south of us, and destroyed two 

 neighboring towns. Evening and night warm and rainy, the strong south 

 wind still continuing. I was not in the woods at all on the 18th, but either 

 on the night of the 17th or 18th there must have been much migration, as I 

 found great changes when reaching the woods on the 19th. 



May 19. — This day can be set down as the height of the season for birds 

 at this place, but yet so many of the transients had already passed northward 

 that, although the woods were full to overflowing with song, the most of the 

 melody came from a few birds. The redstarts furnished a large part of the 

 music, and the rest of the choir was composed principally of vireos and fly- 

 catchers. With this day terminated most of the work in migration for this 

 Spring. It was tlie grand swell of the migratory wave just before its final 

 subsidence. The arrival of only six birds refiiained to be chronicled, and the 



