188 Notes on Arrival and Nesting of Birds — Benner. 



On the 8th they were followed by our social friends, the blue- 

 birds. April 10th, while driving out Third avenue south towards 

 Richfield, I found a nest and three young of the shore lark. They 

 appeared to be about a week old. This, I think was very early, al- 

 though on March 24, '81, I found a nest just begun on Lowry's 

 hill and within fifteen feet of a bank of snow two feet deep. 

 The eggs were laid by April 2nd, and although 1 left them until 

 the 5th, two more were deposited. I think rarely more than three^ 

 are laid in the first brood. 



April 18th, I noted the chipping sparrow; April 25th, the 

 golden crowned wren. 



May 2nd, I found in the lake Harriet woods, a nest of three 

 eggs of the Cooper's hawk. The birds were evidently young as 

 they exhibited no fear of me and perched in the neighboring tree. 

 I have visited the same nest this season ( 1888) and found only one 

 of the birds, but climbing the tree found I was too early for the 

 eggs. Vegetation was much further advanced than it is this year. 

 That same day I found five pe wee's nests in course of construction. 

 They seemed to like the porches of the deserted houses around lake 

 Harriet where they can raise their little families before campers 

 make it too uncomfortable for them. One had even gone through 

 a broken window and built its nest on the top of a window casing 

 in a second story room. 



May 5th, I made my way to lake Johanna, to a tamarack 

 swamp there, which is very fruitful for the ornithologist. First, I 

 found a crow's nest, but did not disturb it, then a Cooper's hawk's 

 with four comparatively fresh eggs, and not far from that, in an 

 old hawk's nest, five eggs of long eared owl, partially incubated. 

 The bird flew ofE as I climbed the tree and kept hovering around 

 and flying from tree to tree, snapping her bill while the eggs were 

 being taken. Both birds, in fact, were there, but I only secured 

 the female. 



This same day I found robins breeding, four eggs in nest. 

 Quite a number of wild flowers were in blossom, among those 

 most common, was the yellow cowslip. 



May 15th, I went out again and got a full set of five eggs 

 of the pewee perfectly fresh. A prairie chicken's nest was ob- 

 served at Hardley's farm with six eggs, the nest deserted. 



May 25th, I went to Grassy lake, beyond Richfield. Here the- 

 black tern, gallinules, yellow-headed blackbird and grebes were- 



