Vol. XXII 

 1905 



Stockard, Nesting' Habits of Mississippi Birds. ICC 



possibly to avoid some obstruction in the line ; they are always dug by 

 the birds, and in all those observed were occupied only for a single sea- 

 son. This construction is very similar to that made by the Bank Swal- 

 low but is rather larger and extends further back. The two species were 

 often seen building their burrows close together in the same bank. The 

 Kingfisher builds no nest in its tunnel, although the floor of the back 

 chamber is often strewn with pieces of crayfish shells that have been 

 ejected from the stomach of the old birds. The Bank Swallow, on the 

 other hand, places a rather neat nest of straws in the back of its burrow. 

 The Kingfisher laid in all cases six eggs, and the earliest were seen on 

 April 28, 1897, the latest on June 7, 1895. May is their chief month for 

 laying. They often dig many shallow burrows in the same bank before 

 striking the permanent nest cavity, just as woodpeckers do on their nest 

 tree. After finding many Kingfisher burrows, some new and many old, 

 I noticed that in the case of all occupied nests there was a slight ridge 

 running along the middle line of the tunnel floor, which was due to the 

 fact that the feet of the birds pressed down paths along the sides of the 

 floor, thus leaving the middle ridge untrampled as they passed back and 

 forth through the tunnel. Nearly all traces of this delicate ridge were 

 obliterated in the old tunnels, particularly near their entrances, so that 

 they were readily distinguishable from those occupied. 



31. Campephilus principalis. Ivory-billed Woodpecker. — I have 

 never seen this woodpecker in Mississippi, although many claim to 

 observe them in the western part of the State in the dense river swamps. 



32. Dryobates pubescens. Downy Woodpecker. — The earliest set 

 of this species was taken April 20, 1900, and the latest on May 18, 1902. 

 For fuller details of the nesting habits of Woodpeckers in Mississippi, see 

 Auk, Vol. XXI, No. 4. In this article I shall give only the extreme dates 

 on which sets were taken. 



33. Ceophlceus pileatus. Pileated Woodpecker. — The earliest eggs 

 were found April 1, 1901, and the latest set was seen on May 8, 1903. 



34. Melanerpes erythrocephalus. Red-headed Woodpecker. — May 

 12, 1901, was the date of the earliest set seen, and fresh eggs were found 

 as late as June 14. 



35. Centurus carolinus. Red-bellied Woodpecker. — The earliest 

 set was found on April 24, 1900, and the latest on June 2, iqoo. These 

 two extreme sets were both from the same pair, the last mentioned being 

 the fourth set of the season. These birds have a remarkable capacity for 

 continuous laying. 



36. Colaptes auratus. Flicker. — The earliest and latest dates on 

 which eggs of this species were collected were April 12, 1896 and June 4, 

 1899. 



37. Antrostomus carolinensis. Chuck-will's-widow. — The call of 

 the Chuck-will's-widow is a familiar sound throughout Mississippi, but 

 to observe the bird is not a common pleasure, and to find its eggs is a 

 difficult proposition indeed. The birds are migratory and reach home 



