Vol. XX 



1905 



II_ | Wood & Froth inch am. Birds of Au Sable Valley. 4.3 



eastern side of a high ridge which is the watershed of this part of 

 Michigan, and is the highest land on the lower peninsula. It is 

 1300 to 1450 feet above the sea. From this watershed in Otsego 

 County starts the Au Sable River, the main stream running south 

 to Grayling about twenty-five miles, then east and southeast to 

 Oscoda on Lake Huron. The North Branch, a good sized stream, 

 also starts in Otsego County and running southeast joins the 

 main stream about thirty miles east of Grayling. This town is 

 built on a high, level, barren terrace of light colored sand and is a 

 poor place for birds. I saw here the English Sparrow, the Song, 

 Vesper, and Chipping Sparrows, a flock of Red-winged Blackbirds, 

 a few Robins and a Marsh Hawk near the river. 



The Au Sable River here is small, only two to three rods wide 

 and deep enough to float a small boat ; the banks are lined with 

 cedars, most of them dead. I had fine views of the birds which 

 were feeding in the trees along the river. In the dead trees I saw 

 the Hairy, Downy, and Red-headed Woodpeckers (this last spe- 

 cies not very common here), Yellow-bellied Sapsucker, both the 

 White and Red-breasted Nuthatches, and the Flickers. These 

 latter and the Blue Jays were never out of sight or sound. In the 

 live cedars and tamaracks I saw the Goldfinches, Kinglets and 

 Myrtle Warblers. We had gone but a few miles when I saw a 

 Lincoln's Sparrow perched in a low bush at the edge of a thick 

 swamp. We had the opportunity (my first) of seeing this rare 

 sparrow at close range, about fifty feet. Its peculiar color and 

 markings make this bird easy to identify. While I was waiting for 

 a better shot the bird disappeared in the thick brush and was not 

 seen again. Near here I saw a Tennessee Warbler, close to the 

 edge of the water, and heard the sharp rattle of a Kingfisher. 

 Flocks of Chickadees were feeding in the cedars, while on the 

 higher banks I saw the J unco. 



At the junction of the North Branch with the Au Sable we 

 camped for two days. This was not far from the locality where, 

 in July, I found the Kirtland Warblers breeding, and on Sept. 12 

 we made a visit to the locality. I did not expect to find any of 

 the birds so late in the season. The spot looked the same as 

 when I last saw it, even to the tree where I first saw the male of 

 the first nest. This bird used this tree as a post of observation 



