INTRODUCTION 



In considering the Bird fauna of a district, a knowledge of the 

 topography and other physical conditions is important. The region 

 in question includes all of Madison county, and is, roughly speaking, 

 in the center of New York state. The district is traversed by 

 rather deep fertile valleys seldom exceeding a mile in breadth and 

 having a general trend of north and south. The north-eastern 

 boundary upon Oneida county forms a part of the divide between 

 the headwaters of the Mohawk and Susquehanna river systems. 



Along the hill slopes, in the numerous gorges and sometimes on 

 the crests of the hills, one sees many of the outcrops of rocks of the 

 Hamilton formation. Many of those appearing on the crests exhibit 

 glacial striae. In fact the whole district with its gentle slopes, well 

 rounded hills, its numerous glacial terraces, its morainic deposits, 

 its mantle of till, and the presence of multitudes of erratic boulders, 

 constitutes a typical glaciated region. 



The northern part of the county borders on Oneida Lake. A 

 broad sandy beach many miles in extent furnishes an abundance of 

 food for the snipes, sandpipers, plovers and other shore birds, while 

 the size of the lake is such as to attract large numbers of the duck 

 and other families of swimming and diving birds. While any bird 

 taken on Oneida Lake or its shores outside of Madison county may 

 be considered a part of the fauna of that county, it is thought best 

 to include in the following list only those which have been taken in 

 Madison county with the possible exception of a few recorded from 

 Verona Beach, separated only by a small stream. The presence of 

 five or six small lakes a mile or more in length renders the interior 

 of the county also favorable to a limited number of water birds. 

 But as these bodies of water usually freeze over during the early 

 frosts, very few of the water birds may be found during the winter 

 months. 



It will not be out of place to locate a few of the more important 

 lakes and ponds. About three miles north of Hamilton are two, 

 known locally as "Leland's Ponds." Upon the bottoms of these 



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