SHRIKES 467 



the spruce and hackmatack trees. These nests are built with 

 a foundation of small twigs, the rest of their structure being 

 the soft Usnea lichen, erroneously called Usnea moss, and a 

 peculiar soft, black, thread-like lichen resembling the gray 

 Usnea. Such nests are large, substantial and very handsome. 

 One at hand measures five inches in diameter outside by two 

 and a half inside, while its exterior height is two and a half 

 and the depth inside one and a half inches. 



The eggs are three to six, generally four or five. They are 

 light slate or pale bluish gray, spotted and blotched with black, 

 umber, brown and purple. The spots are rather scattered over 

 the surface, but generally fewest on the smaller end. Five eggs 

 taken at Orono, June 29, 1896, measure 0.87 x 0.62, 0.88 x 

 0.64, 0.89 X 0.65, 0.87 x 0.64, 0.85 x 0.61 . Both birds aid in 

 building the nest, the construction of which requires from a 

 week to twelve days. An egg is laid each day until the set is 

 complete, and both birds help in the work of incubation. The 

 male is generally not far away when not incubating, often 

 perched on the top of a near by tree. He does his share also 

 in feeding the young. Incubation takes about fourteen days 

 and the young remain in the nest about sixteen days. 



Family LANIID.^. Shrikes. 



Key to the species of LANIID^^. 



A. Wing over 4.30 ; nasal tufts always whitish or grayish on top ; lores 



grayish black; under parts generally strongly barred with wavy 

 vermicular lines. Northern Shrike. 



B. Wing under 4.25 ; lores and nasal tufts wholly black ; breast unbarred 

 or faintly barred with wavy vermicular lines. Migrant Shrike. 



Genus LANIUS Linnaeus. 



621. Lanius horeaUs Vieill. Northern Shrike. 



Plumage of adults : wings and tail black, the primaries white at base and 

 secondaries tipped with grayish or whitish ; the tail feathers, especially the 

 outer ones, more or less white tipped ; forehead whitish ; lores grayish ; nasal 



