General Notes. 55 



Navarro Co., Texas, by a correspondent of the National Museum, Mr. J. 

 Douglas Ogilby, who has kindly forwarded me the following particulars, 

 with permission to send the same for publication in the Bulletin. 



•' I shot the specimen on a small lake or rather pond in the Trinity River 

 bottom, and surrounded everywhere with dense timber. When I first saw 

 it it was sitting on a branch close down to the mud on the edge of the lake, 

 and on being disturbed only flew a few yards to another similar resting 

 place. It was very tame, and from the thickness of the undergrowth of the 

 place I could onlv shoot from a few yards distant from it. so that it was 

 frightfully cut up by the shot. The head, however, was perfect, and at once 

 on lifting it I was struck by the curious, sharply-ridged bill. It was a male, 

 and measured, total length. 5.65; wing. 2.72; tail, 2.18; tarsus, 0.72 ; mid- 

 dle toe, 0.66; bill. 0.64. The upper parts were brownish-green, tinged 

 with reddish on head and wings ; below light greenish-yellow, tinged with 

 ashy on sides ; bill dark brown above, light at base; legs and feet flesh- 

 color ; irides brown ; graduation of quills. 3. 2. 1-4-5. It was in company 

 or at least in the same clump of bushes, with some Prothonotaries. — 

 Robert Ridgway. Washington, B.C. 



Notes on the Habits of the Cliff Swallow {Pctrockelidou luni- 

 frons). — Within my collecting grounds is a locality where numbers of 

 these birds have nested for many years. This is a shed, open only on one 

 side, where the birds have attached their nests to the sleepers of the loft. 

 In the spring of 187S they returned about the usual time and soon began 

 repairing old nests or constructing new ones. One dav, while watching 

 them. I noticed one bird remained in her half-finished nest, and did not 

 appear to be much engaged. Soon a neighbor, owning a nest a few 

 feet away, arrived with a fresh pellet of clay and. adjusting it in a satis- 

 factory manner, flew away for more. No sooner was she out of sight than 

 the quiet bird repaired to the neighbor's nest, appropriated the fresh clay 

 and moulded it to her own nest! When the plundered bird returned, no 

 notice was taken of the theft, which was repeated as soon as she was again 

 out of sight. I saw these movements repeated numerous times, but was 

 called away, and when I again returned both nests were completed. 



In the same place a nest remained undisturbed, and was occupied bv 

 probably the same pair of birds for several seasons. This spring they 

 returned to the old nest, and all appeared prosperous, until one dav I 

 noticed a number of Swallows engaged in walling up the entrance of this 

 old nest. This, and the outline of a new nest over the old. was soon com- 

 pleted. I then broke open the closed nest and found within the dead bodv 

 of a Swallow. This bird had probably died a natural death, and the friends 

 being unable to lemove the body, and knowing it would soon become 

 offensive, adopted this method of sealing it up. — F. H. Knowlton, 

 Brandon, Vt. 



Another Capture of the Loggerhead Shrike in Massachu- 

 setts. — Although the Loggerhead Shrike is now known to breed regu- 

 larly at certain points in the northern New England States, the records ofits 



