Sherman — Notes from a Watering Place. 149 



cupies a handsome apartment in the "West End" is the same 

 bird that has roosted there for three sumn:ers : that returned 

 to roost in the barn last A^ril : that was ardently courted by two 

 females in the latter part of that month : that in an elegant 

 home on the "South Side" helped tO' rear a family of six with 

 a devotion worthy of any father, be he bird or human. It is 

 likely, that he and the other Flicker lodgers are some of this 

 species that have been raised in the barm in the years that have 

 passed. The maintenance of their rights to their own quarters 

 was exemplified by an unusual performance in the second week 

 of the month, when one evening the flirtatious female, followed 

 by three or four male Flickers, arrived and began calling. 

 Scon the owner of the hole in the west end of of the barn re- 

 tired to it. The female, standing on the projecting edge of the 

 roof, seemed to call to- him repeatedly before she flew away. 

 There were signs of an approaching rain the next evening 

 when the female arrived first of all. From the roof's edge she 

 inspected the hole then flew to it, went in and comfortably 

 seltled herself before the owner arrived. He flew straight to 

 the hole, and without parleying, entered, and in about three 

 seconds the shrieking female flew out and sought a roost in a 

 neighboring tree. 



Last year ninety-seven species of birds were identified about 

 our house, and the blind scarcely one hundred yards away. Of 

 these forty-seven species were observed from the blind during 

 August. Although the smallest number recorded as present on 

 any day was sixteen, and the highest thirty-one^ the daily aver- 

 age for the month has been twenty-two species. Among these 

 an unusually early migrant was a Purple Finch, first seen Au- 

 gust 23 ; also seen on two days following". 



A very rare visitor was a Blue-gray Gnatcatcher which ca,me 

 on the last morning of the month. In fact it was the first of 

 the species ever identified on our grounds, and is rarely met 

 with in the woods in this locality. Of the warbler family the 

 first to arrive from the north was the Grinnell Water-Thrush, 

 on August 14, and its departure will be the last of September, 

 just as the Swamp Sparrows begin to come. A pecuiarity in 

 its spring and fall movements has been remarked for several 



