THE OREGON NATURALIST. 



39 



"I am inclinedto believe that the numerous 

 skunks, weasels and mink, interfere seriously 

 with them while breeding, and in the course of 

 time, when the vermin of this locality shall have 

 been more subdued, our Bob-white will in- 

 crease and flourish to a marked extent * * * 



"Some ten or twelve years ago two pair of 

 birds were brought here as I am told, by Hon. 

 R. P. Bird, and set free at his place near La 

 Fayette, but never have increased to any ex- 

 tent. Some were also liberated near Denny, 

 Or., but they are only found in small numbers." 



Mr. Howe, has had a fine opportunity for 

 studying the habits of this bird, consequently 

 his letter was of great interest at the meeting. 



Mr. G. D. Peck, of Salem, in a short letter 

 says; Bob- whites are heard whistling in 

 that vicinity every June, wliich he believes is a 

 sign that they are mated. In Nov. last he saw 

 a flock of five or six, an old bird and her 

 young; the young, being about hal' grown. 



A very valuable letter was then read from 

 Mr. Ellis F. Hadley, of Dayton. He writes: 

 "The first Bob-white Quail that were intro- 

 duced into Yamhill county, Or., to my knowl- 

 edge was in 1875, by Hon. A. R. Burbank, 

 of LaFayette, who brought two pair from 

 Whinby's Island, Washington, which were 

 formerly brought from Illinois. The two 

 pair cost him eight dollars, and were kept in 

 confinement a while, but escaped and what 

 became of them is unknown. 



"I first saw a Bob-while in 1878, also in '88 

 and again in '92. Several are now seen every 

 year. In '94 a nest and 14 eggs were found 

 near her^ as was the case last year." 



Mr. Rey Stryker, of Milwaukee, Or., re- 

 members having seen a few Bob-whites near 

 Albany, about '82 or '84, which were quite 

 tame and which he evidently believed had 

 recently been turned loose. 



Other facts were given by the members 

 present and a general discussion was indulged 

 in, much valuable data was produced and it was 

 generally conceded that the Bob-white Quail 

 was slowly, but surely increasing in Oregon. 



Mr. Bard, of Portland, read a short article 

 on the Bob-white, which was very interesting. 

 D. F. W. 



THE PIED-BILLED GREBE. 



I do not know of a more interesting bird than 

 our common grebe, or dab-chick and as it is 

 common m Oregon, I think it must breed here. 

 In Iowa, it breeds in rather small marshes, 

 and its nest is the most curious thing connected 

 with its life- history. It is composed of half 

 decayed flags and rushes in sufficient quantity 

 to fill a half bushel basket. 



The nest floats, rising and falling with the 

 water in the marsh and only a small part shows 

 above the water. It is neatly finished off and 

 hollowed just enough to keep the eggs in place 

 and as it is nearly on a level with the water 

 the Grebe climbs on with out trouble. I have 

 examined a number of these nests and they 

 were as warm as a hot- bed. ,It may not be 

 the design of the Grebe to incubate her eggs 

 in this way, but she could leave the nest for 

 hours with out injury to her eggs. 



When she hears an intruder approaching, 

 she covers the eggs with decayed vegetation, 

 which I think she keeps on hand for the pur- 

 pose, and then tries to decoy the intruder 

 away from the nest. I once surprised one of 

 these Grebes with a young one on her back, as 

 I approached she sank, leaving the chick strug- 

 gling in the water, being helpless it would 

 have drowned I believe, if I had not placed it 

 upon a nest. The young Grebes are very 

 neat and pretty, and when two or three days 

 old can slip under water as easy as their 

 parents. Full sets of from five to eight eggs 

 are found from the first to the twentieth of 

 June. Geo. D. Peck, 



.Salem, Ore. 



This winter the Western Robin has failed 

 to make its appearance as usual. In previous 

 years it came about Nov., 1st, with the 

 bluebirds. I would Uke to know if the W. 

 Robin is present as usual in other localities in 

 southern California. 



J. Maurice Hatch, 

 Escondido. 



Feb., loth, S. Rey Stryker, secured a speci- 

 men of Townsends Solitaire, male, near Mil- 

 waukee, Or. 



