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fAuk 



Stock ard, Nesting- Habits of Mississippi Birds. j u . 



was found in the bushes that bordered a country road in Lowndes 

 County. This road was used in the fall and winter for hauling cotton 

 and some of the lint remained tangled in the bushes throughout the year. 

 The nest was placed three and one half feet from the ground in a crotch 

 of a small gum bush, and the outer part of it was cotton giving the whole 

 much the appearance of a ball of lint caught in the branches. This nest 

 and set of four eggs were taken. Two weeks later, June 1, on chancing 

 to pass along the same road and glancing toward the former nest bush a 

 second nest was seen. This was exceedingly like the other, its outer part 

 being of cotton, and was placed in the identical crotch from which the 

 first had been removed. On approaching it was found also to contain 

 four fresh Blue Grosbeak's eggs. This was rather quick work, building 

 a nest and laying four eggs within fourteen days. These birds are not 

 very common in this section and it looks highly improbable that two 

 pairs would have selected the same fork of a bush during one season. 

 Presuming that one pair built both nests, which seems to be the case, 

 this is a most marked illustration of the lack of ability to select another 

 site when one proves so unfavorable. Considering the promptness with 

 which the nest was replaced evidently no attempt was made to choose 

 another suitable bush from the many close at hand. 



60. Passerina cyanea. Indigo Bunting. — This bunting was not a 

 common bird, but it was often seen perched on the tops of bushes or the 

 tip of a weed where it uttered its pleasant warble, more frequently about 

 middav. The nests were found in low bushes and blackberry vines near 

 the edges of fields, but were also found in dense cane thickets, in which 

 locality the foundation of the nest was made entirely of cane leaves. 

 The nest was placed only a few feet from the ground. The sets usually 

 contained three eggs, rarely four. The earliest noted set was May 6, 

 1S97, and the latest June 9, 1900. 



61. Passerina ciris. Painted Bunting. — In only one county of the 

 State was this bunting seen. 1 In Claiborne County they were plentiful, 

 though I did not have an opportunity to observe their nests. Directly 

 across the river in Louisiana they were common almost everywhere and 

 nests were easily found. The male was often caged and known by the 

 foolish name ' pop. 1 



62. Spiza americana. Dickcissel. — The Black-throated Bunting, as 

 this bird is also called, was commonly seen. The nests were occasionally 

 found though only two were recorded before the spring of 1900. That 

 spring a large field was located that had been planted in vetch the pre- 

 vious fall and by the first of May a long luxuriant growth completely 

 covered the land. This arrangement evidently appealed strongly to the 

 Dickcissels, for late in April they could be seen in all parts of the field, 



1 1 have since found the Painted Bunting rather common in Washington 

 County. 



