l.YI LIFE-HISTORIES OF BIRDS 



An hot a rubicunda, Endrvas grata. 

 pomonellajm<\ various noctuicls and tortricids among lepi- 

 doptera ; Formica sauginnca. P. rnfa* F. subtcrranca. 

 and other hymcnoptera ; Aphis mali and A. roscc. Whilst 

 feeding, we have occasionally observed these birds to sei/.e 

 their prey on the wing, but it is not customary, and is only 

 accomplished by dint of considerable effort. Although a 

 highly insectivorous species, it has often been seen to eat 

 different kinds of fruits. The berries of ^unipcrns } 7r- 

 giniana, Lonicera periclymenum^ the jtiicv cherry, and 

 the mellow apple, are favorite articles of luxury. 



Wilson describes the eggs as of a white translucent color 

 when fresh, varying slightly in configuration, and as being 

 more oval and less spherical than some other species. Xut- 

 tall describes them as being marked with reddish spots about 

 the larger extremity, which is also re-stated by Dr. Thomp- 

 son in his "Birds of Vermont." 



According to our experience, the eggs arc more or less 

 spherical, of a pure white color, and measure 1.12 of an 

 inch in length, and .88 in width. 



Colaptes auratus, s. 



The Yellow-shafted Woodpecker is the most widely dis- 

 tributed, as well as the most common species of our North 

 American Picidce. Richardson found it in the fur countries 

 during the summer months, and a migrant as far as Great 

 Slave Lake in the north. On the plains of the Saskatche- 

 wan, he met with it in vast numbers. In Texas and in the 

 Indian Territory, Dr. Woodhouse discovered it to be quite 

 common ; and even far to the north-east, specimens have 

 been taken in Greenland, according to Reinhardt. At Fort 

 Anderson, it has been taken by Macfarlane ; at Forts Reso- 

 lution and Simpson ; by Ross and at Fort Yukon by Kennicott. 

 It ranges from the Gulf of Mexico to the Arctic Ocean, and 

 ii the Atlantic Coast to the Rocky Mountains. In the 

 orthern parts of the continent, it is only a summer occupant ; 



