CATALOGUE OF CANADIAN BIRDS. 639 
the same in the Milk River valley and along St. Mary’s River and 
at Waterton Lake; first seen at Edmonton, Alta., May 27th, 1897, 
common and nesting in the willows by June Ist; common from 
Edmonton to the summit of the Rocky Mountains in Yellowhead 
Pass in July, 1898, breeding in willow thickets on the borders of 
marshes; common from Lesser Slave Lake to Peace River Land- 
ing, Lat. 56° 15’, in June, 1903; quite common in the foothills 
from Calgary southward; a nest containing four eggs was found 
on Bragg’s Creek on June 28th, 1897, in atuft of grass, nest made 
of dry grass; this:was a common species at Banff, within the 
Rocky Mountains in June, 1891. (Spreadborough.) 
BreEpDING Notes.—Breeds at Ottawa and Lake Nominingue, 
100 miles north of it, from the middle of May to the middle of 
July. Nests in swampy places and undergrowth, on or near the 
ground, hidden among reeds, weeds and small bushes; they are 
made of reed-stalks, grasses and leaves, lined with fine grass and 
sometimes a few hairs; two nests were found in reed-plants hav- 
ing the form of inverted cones five inches long. Nests average 
4 x 3 and 2 x 1°50. (Garneau.) Nests are built in low bushes close 
to the ground at Ottawa, composed ot dead leaves and grass, lined 
with fine grass, hair and rootlets. Eggs 4 to 6, white, sparingly 
sprinkled at larger end with brown. (G. R. White.) The nests I 
have seen contained eggs the first week in June}; the nest is well 
concealed, but I have seen two, which were six or eight inches 
above the ground; one of these wasin a small elm sapling, around 
which long rank grass grew; I could not assign the nest to any 
other species as the eggs were similar to others I had seen and 
a male bird was hopping about in the immediate vicinity. (Rev. 
CJ, Vouns) 
MUSEUM SPECIMENS. 
Eleven; one taken at Ottawa by Dr. F. A. Saunders; one pur- 
chased with the Holman collection in 1885; one taken at Ottawa 
in May, 1888, by the writer; one taken at 12-Mile Lake near Wood 
Mountain, Assa., June 5th, 1895, two at Medicine Hat, Assa., May, 
1894, three at Edmonton, Alta.,in May, 1897, two at Banff, Rocky 
Mountains, June, 1891, all by Mr. W. Spreadborough. 
Three sets of eggs; one of three taken at Indian Head, Assa, 
June 6th, 1892; one of four taken on Bragg’s Creek, foothills of 
Rocky Mountains, Alta., June 28th, 1897, both by Mr. Spread- 
15 
