402 BOARD OF AGRICULTURE. fPub. Doc. 



feed wild ducks with grain, Wilbur Smith, Fairfield Couutj 

 game wardeu at South jSTorwalk, Connecticut, wrote me that 

 " a good many " ducks died along the Connecticut shore. It 

 was his opinion that not less than 200 ducks died in one locality 

 in his territory. It is inteiesting to note that eyen the scauj) or 

 broadbill ducks, which are divers and can obtain food in fairly 

 deejD water, were staryed. Mr. Smith sj^eaks of picking up 

 three from the ice at one time, and seeing six lying on the ice 

 not more than twenty feet away, while scattered oyer the riyer 

 and on the " Island " were crows which " under the glass could 

 be seen eating dead ducks." Fortunately a thaw came just in 

 time to saye many water fowl from actual staryation. 



BiEDs IN THE City. 



Everybody goes to the country to see birds. Few people 

 realize how many birds visit open spaces in the city during 

 migrations. These ojDen, flowering, tree-studded, grassy spaces 

 amid the wdlderness of brick blocks and city streets attract the 

 weary migrants. Perhaps the night glare of the city confuses 

 them in their nocturnal flight, and brings them down to seek 

 the rest and food to be found in the parks. Many a strange 

 visitor may be found there in the early morning. Bradford 

 Torrey relates that a friend apj)lied to a distinguished ornitholo- 

 gist for his advice regarding a locality to find certain rare 

 warblers, and was told to go to Central Park, New York. The 

 diversity of vegetation in the parks provides food suitable for 

 many species. A few still live and breed in city parks. Dr. 

 and Mrs. E. W. Victor have been kind enough to send me an 

 excellent monthly record of the birds seen by them in Prospect 

 Park, Brooklyn, New York, in 1914-. The list contains the 

 number of species and individuals noted on each day that the 

 park was visited. These visits were made from seven to thirteen 

 days in each month. In May, 85 species were seen, and the 

 greatest numlier of individual birds seen in one day was 393. 

 English sparrows were not counted. 



The smallest numbers of species (14) were seen in both Janu- 

 ary and February, and the smallest number of individuals seen 

 was 21, on February 4. Probably it would be difficult to find in 



