</.< ;: 



I'll.- notfs are simply indescribable. Inn ,.nl they run 



m-\. _T"tt. 'ii Their \olume ami penetration are truly 



\\ond. i till . they ar.- neither l<ul ii"i strong, y.-t t IP u hole 



-.-.ill'- tilled \\itll tin- tend, i i tin- delightful 



melody e.. utilities long unbroken. Tin- song is only ln- ; n-.| for 

 -1 in the summer ceasing when tin- inspiration of 



til.- lo\e season ; n, | it is only Uttered when tin- l-il'ds 



It is nit a little singular tliut tin- Missouri skylark should 

 have so long coiitiiiui-l to In- rai- in coll.-ctioiis ni 

 \. ry al.uixlunt in tin- f.\t-iisi\ , which it inhabits. Th.- 



first sjM-ciiii.-ii \vas tak<-n ly Ainlulxni at Fort Cuioii. .lun- 

 I!M ; iiiaiiit-.l uniiuc. Soin.- y.-ars a' 



wan Is aiiothi-r spn-iinru was tak.-ii l.y ( 'aptain Hhu-kist- ui, on 

 tin- Saskatchewan, and which is now pivst-rxvil in tin- Siuith- 

 in Institut'- at Washington. W- ruivt'ully packed this set 

 of rare eggs and tramp-d homewards. The only m-st we 

 found on our return journey wa.s that of tin- wrst,-rn \>-sp,-|- 

 nrow, with four eggs; they are similar to those of tli-- eom- 

 inon v.-sper sparrow found in the east, Imt are somewhat 

 smaller: the m-st was also similar. We came across two 1. 

 flocks .,!' e..wl.irds; then- must have leeii a hundred in each 

 tlK-k. They are known here as buffalo birds, from their hal.it 

 of following the herds of l.uttalo. They fiv|U.-nt the ranch. -s. 

 and an- always seen amongst the cattle, perching on their 

 Lacks and feeding on the insects found around cattle, they 

 becom- \--ry tain.- and will hardly get out of the way. Like 

 the I !i euekiM), they lay their eggs in other 1-inls nests, 



and know nothing of the cares of bringing up their y. 

 leaving this for other birtls to attend t,.; and, like the Kim. 

 pean cuckoo, the eowbird lays & very small egg for the si/ 

 the l.inl, and the hal>its of both .s|-eie S in regard to niditica- 

 t ion are very similar. I have several times found two t 

 bird's eggs in one neat and the eggs s<> much resembled each 

 other as to leave no doubt as to their having U-en laid by the 

 same bird; but they usually only lay one egg in each nest, 

 and probably lay five or six eggs during the season. J)r 



