78 COPEIA 



about 70 pounds) in the water at Blue's Bridge, near 

 Pinebluff, he in the stern, I in the bow, and started 

 down the Lumbee bound for the Turnpike Bridge, 

 25 miles below. The day was delightful, just cool 

 enough, sky nearly clear, very little breeze, — an ideal 

 spring day. 



At Blue's Bridge the Lumbee is about 30 feet 

 wide and several feet deep; water very clear, only 

 slightly brown stained from the cypress and other 

 trees standing in the water. 



The banks are fairly well defined only in a few 

 places, and the water spreads much beyond them 

 here and there and covers considerable areas of cy- 

 press swamp. Besides the cypress, which is the prin- 

 cipal tree, there are in the water, loblolly pine, a few 

 small bay, a few holly, soft maples with brilliant red 

 samaras, a few gums (probably two species), and Si- 

 mons says some junipers, but I saw none. A great 

 many old dead snags that afford good nesting places 

 for such birds as downies, white-bellied nut hatches, 

 chickadees, and golden swamp warblers. Many of 

 the trees have mistletoe growing on them. Growing 

 in the water are a few yellow nuphars and potamoge- 

 tons, while in the smaller tributaries and swamps the 

 golden club was in full flower. 



Owing to the uncertain character of the banks 

 the stream simply flows in a widening, indefinite 

 channel through a series of cypress swamps. Only 

 at intervals is there any dry ground. The swamps 

 are of varying and indeterminate width, but nearly 

 everywhere wider than the eye could penetrate. 



The course of the stream is very sinuous, there 

 being rarely a straight stretch of more than a few 

 yards. The points projecting into the concave side 

 of the curve are known locally as "cowfaces." There 

 is everywhere a good, strong current, particularly 

 where the water sweeps around the "cowfaces." 

 Where the stream has straightened itself bv cutting 

 across the cowface, the abandoned "ox-bow" is local- 



