Bird Study in a Nebraska Swamp 59 



them in contact with others onto which he went. After 

 traveling in the tops for a little way, he commenced to work 

 toward the water, and reaching a broken reed rested a while. 

 In a few moments he proceeded along this reed to another 

 and was soon out of sight. The second nestling left at 

 7 :00 A. M. in the same manner, and the third started several 

 times but returned and was still sitting on the edge of the 

 nest when the blind was closed for the day. 



I had one glimpse of some of the dangers to which the 

 young Yellow-heads are exposed. One of the young from a 

 neighboring nest was sitting on a reed about two inches above 

 the water when the jaws of a hungry pickerel rose from the 

 water and the nestling disappeared. It was done so quickly 

 that if I had not been looking directly at the bird it would 

 never have attracted my attention. It is probable that others 

 meet the same fate. Several times I noted fledglings that had 

 just left the nest fall into the water. They managed to 

 crawl out on a convenient reed but some may lose their lives 

 in this way. 



RED-WINGED BLACKBIRD. (Agelaius phoeuiceus phoeniceus). 



During the season of 1913 the Redwings were few in 

 number, only four nests being found in the part of the 

 swamp examined. As a usual thing the nests are placed in 

 the flags or cat-tails, but all of these were in small willows 

 from three to eight feet high, growing just in the edge of 

 the water. No others of this usually abundant species were 

 noted, and apparently the four pair were all that were in the 

 southeastern half of the swamp. In all swamps where I have 

 found both of the marsh blackbirds the same distribution has 

 been noted ; i. e., the Yellow-heads occupied the body of the 

 swamp and the Red-wings the edges. As far as my experi- 

 ence goes the former always builds over deep water. The 

 latter, however, is more variable, building along the edge or 

 farther out in the swamp indiscriminately when the Yellow- 

 head is absent, and occasionally nesting in fields quite remote 

 from any water. 



