48 BIRDS OF SWOPE PARK 



SEGTION NUMBER 14 



One of the most interesting walks of the whole investiga- 

 tion was the canvass of the Old Rifle Range and the country 

 bordering it. The Rifle Range itself, is a broad meadow of 

 blue grass and weeds. Bordering it to the east is a still more 

 extensive meadow of alfalfa and timothy, with plenty of 

 daisy, fleabane and other weeds. 



Off to the south lies a range of hills and rock ledges. 

 The upper slopes are covered with prairie vegetation, but 

 lower down the slope this merges into a tangled growth of 

 brush and trees. (See page — .) 



Along the Blue River is a strip of dense woods inhabited 

 by Warblers, Titmice and Chickadees. 



The meadow is remarkable for its number of Dickcissels. 

 Their notes were ringing out in all directions. Every weed 

 stalk was a chorister's platform. It was impossible to accur- 

 ately count the singers, but a conservative estimate was made 

 by counting the singing birds over a narrow strip and then 

 multiplying this by the number of similar strips included in 

 the tract. This estimate gave fifty male Dickcissels for the 

 whole section which I think is not far from correct. 



The thicket-like extension of the bordering woods that 

 projected into the meadow, was a favorite place for the White- 

 eyed Vireo. One of these birds gave me an excellent demon- 

 stration of his vocal powers. He was truly a great singer, with 

 a wonderful variety of trills and warbles, yet he always kept 

 the peculiar quality of the White-eyed Vireo. The variations, 

 however, were so great that I was obliged to stop and spend 



