Bulletin No. 26. 



99. House Wren. C 106. Blue-gray Gnatcatcher. 



100. Winter Wren. 107. Wood Thrush. C. 



loi. Long-billed Marsh Wren. 108. Wilson's Thrush. C. 



102. White-breasted Nuthatch. C. log. Gray-cheeked Thrush. 



103 Tufted Titmouse. C. no. Olive-backed Thrush. C 



104. Black-capped Chickadee. in. American Robin. C. 



105. Ruby-crowned Kinglet. 112. Bluebird. 



Lynds Jones, Oberlin, Ohi 



45 



GENERAL NOTES. 



On March 17, I saw, much to my surprise, three White-throated 

 Sparrows scratching in the leaves near a clump of barberry bushes 

 under my window. I have heard them nearly every day since, today 

 (April rst) included. Is this not an unusually early date, especially in 

 so backward a season? Mr. H. C. Oberholser's "Birds of Wayne 

 County" gives the date of their spring appearance from April 10 to May 

 17. I have never before observed them earlier than the middle of April. 



Ethel Dane Roberts, IVooster, Ohio. 



(The Lorain County records for the years 1896 to 1899 inclusive are : 

 April 12, April 15, April 16, April i, respectively. My earliest record 

 for central Iowa, during six 3'ears' study, was March 25, 1890. Has any 

 reader an earlier record for central or northern Ohio? — Ed.) 



For two years I have been carefully watching the Chimney Swifts 

 during their season of nest building, with special reference to the 

 question how they snip off the twigs for the nest. My back yard con- 

 tains several apple trees whose tops have ceased to be of use to anything 

 but the birds, and in these dead tops the swifts seem to find abundant 

 nest material. They come sweeping thru them frequently, sometimes 

 stopping to snip off a twig, but oftener evidently on a reconnoitering 

 expedition. Today I spent some time carefully noting them as they 

 circled round and round among the tree-tops. There were four of them. 

 After a low, and often many times repeated flight thru one particular 

 tree-top, during which the head was rapidly turned from side to side in 

 a keen scrutiny, the bird returned and snipped off a twig \vith its feet, 

 then flew directly to the chimney, returning after a little and repeating 

 the performance. In every instance the twig was snipped off with the 



