^°^i^lO^"] General Notes. 87 



never heard anything of the kind from the Hudsonian Chickadee, although 

 I am reasonably familiar with that species, having had abundant oppor- 

 tunities for studying its notes and habits in the forests of northern New 

 England, where I have met with it on many different occasions and during 

 every month of the year except April." My own experience, though not 

 nearly so extensive, is yet corroborative as far as it goes, for I have seen 

 the bird frequently in the month of June on its breeding-grounds in New 

 Hampshire, Vermont, and Nova Scotia, but had never heard anything 

 like a song from it before the occasion now recorded. — Francis H. Allen, 

 West Roxbury, Mass. 



Finding of Three Rare Nests in New Jersey. — The Pine Warbler {Den- 

 droica vigorsi) is described as a common summer resident in the pine barrens 

 of New Jersey, but no nest had been recorded until 1908. On May 13 of 

 that year I was fortunate enough to discover a nest in the process of build- 

 ing near Tuckahoe, N. J. It contained fom- eggs on May 22 and was then 

 secured for my collection. 



It seems strange that a bird, which is so abundant in the pine barrens, 

 which has been noted in the summer repeatedy by ornithologists, and 

 whose nest has been diligently searched for in this section by well-known 

 collectors, should not before this have suffered the discovery of its home. 

 Some light is thrown on the problem by the difficulty I experienced in 

 locating this one, even after I was positive of the tree which contained it. 

 In the first place, the nest was placed at the top of a tall pine tree; second, 

 when seen from below it precisely resembled a large pine cone; third, the 

 birds were unusually quiet in the vicinity of the home, standing for five 

 minutes at a time like statues, and very cautious not to betray the nest.^ 

 Since the discovery I have learned that Mr. H. H. Hann found two nests of 

 this bird at Chatsworth in 1904, but did not record them. 



On May 22, 1908, near Tuckahoe, N. J., I found a nest of Anas rub- 

 ripes trisiis containing nine eggs. On May 26 the eggs had increased to 

 twelve, which were then surrounded and separated from each other by 

 tufts of down. The nest itself was perfectly concealed among high grasses 

 at the foot of a maple tree, one of the few deciduous trees in the vicinity.^ 



The locality chosen by the duck is as wild and secluded a one as can be 

 found on the Jersey coast. It is a pine point which juts out from the main- 

 land into the meadows. Behind it is a barrier of almost impassable swamp, 

 five miles long and two miles wide. Before it are miles of meadows stretch- 

 ing clear to the horizon, where only a line of blue betrays the coast islands. 

 To reach the point requires persistent toiling through masses of briars and 

 constant wading through water, which often rises above the knees. It is 

 to such seclusion that the few members of this species which still nest in 

 the State are compelled to resort. What a marked contrast this is to the 



1 For detailed account see ' Cassinia,' 1908, p. 32. 

 • For detailed account see ' Cassinia,' 1908, p. 37. 



