NUP how innrot 
eee tae let A 
SW ah like ea apt | Aas) ys whi itt BAY pak daub ds ‘ok 
A ‘ Fe * . .% . 
on Soe ak Ph 4 eet 
, ad Pi C4 i rie bat bar | 
92 . ANNUAL REPORT. 
seein Sobins. caterpillars, and other noxious forms, that are eastieah 
forth when winter goes. His food is more varied than that of any other 
have, which may lead him to stretch the tenth commandment and som 
break the eighth, but on the whole he amply repays us for his poaching by ; 
offsetting good he does, ae 
When we have penetrated the silent forests sufficiently, we may catch a glimpse ; 
of the Black-back, three-toed Woodpecker, as he circles under the boughs of the 
evergreens, from tree to tree, but the chances are largely against us, and the 
loud hammering of the Pileated Woodpecker, in the echoing distance, may com- 
pensate us for our failure, by leading us by stealthy steps to where we may “see 
this rare bird. He is the largest by far of his order, in our State, resembling the 
ordinary hen for size, but the hen must be shining black, with the head covered 
with its brightest blood, to complete the possible illusion. While we are softly 
wending our way toward the spot where we hope to see this magnificent bird, 
we almost laid our hand upon the tiny Saw-whet Owl, which flits away a few 
rods, and lights upon the horizontal limb of a sapling but a few feet above the 
ground. Just now, forty feet above us, we see a pair of huge eyes, that are 
staring down upon us only a moment before taking to flight, as noiseless as the 
departure of a spirit. ‘This is the great Horned Owl. We may possibly see the 
Barred Owl, but the uncertainties multiply when we remember that his eyes are 
made for the daylight. These are all permanent inhabitants of the State, but 
the great Grey and Snowy Owls, the former of which is very rare and the latter 
more common, are only winter visitors from the arctic regions. 
The Redtail Hawk, the terror of domestic fowls, and the Redshouldered Hawk, 
equally the terror of the squirrels, remain within the borders of the State to a 
considerable extent. The beautiful Goshawk visits Minnesota regularly in win- 
ter from the higher latitudes. 
A single specimen of a Gyrfalcon, the famous bird of falconry, was obtained 
here a few years ago of a variety never before collected within the domain of the 
United States. It is common to northern Europe, and the higher latitudes of 
North America, breeding in Labrador, and about some portions of Hudson’s 
Bay. The White-headed or Bald Eagle has an abiding home in Minnesota. 
The Golden Eagle is only a rare visitant, or certainly breeds here very rarely if 
at all. 
But the winter is passing. The sun’s altitude has begun to conquer the frosts 
which have held the world in their icy grip, and the mantle of snows that has 
covered the earth begins to show severe rents in many places. The Shore Larks 
multiply as they come forth from the sheltered coverts, and their unpretentious 
melodies touch our awakened ears. The snows have not all gone before their 
nests are completed and the duties of incubation entered upon. These have not 
been finished when the male Robins, in renewed plumage, suddenly come in par- 
ties of from ten to twenty. Their proclivities to cling to the vicinities of the 
habitations of man, make it possible to know with the utmost precision the times. 
of their arrival, for they begin at once their most welcome songs. About the 
same time the Bluebirds appear, but less notably on account of their size, 
although scarcely less so by the singing. The females of both species soon fol- 
low, and about the 15th of April nesting has begun. Their insectiverous habits 
at this time are supposed to be so well known as to need no mention, and were 
it otherwise, time forbids; but I cannot refrain from asking a question or two 
which happily the statistics of science have answered. 
