26 BULLETIN FERGUS COUNTY HIGH SCHOOL 



front part of neck, bordered by white; lower parts black, bordered by white; 

 length 25-30 inches. 



315. PASSENGER PIGEON. Ectopistes migratorius. 



Though no record is at hand regarding the present occurrence of 

 the passenger pigeon in Fergus County, there is excellent authority for 

 including the species in the list of birds of the county. In "Birds of the 

 Northwest," Dr. Coues says: "As the Missouri forms for us a highway of 

 communication with the vast districts which would be otherwise almost inac- 

 cessible, so it seems to lead the pigeons northwesterly, in great numbers, to 

 meridians of longitude they do not gain in the southwest. I never saw or 

 heard of one in New Mexico or Arizona, and have found no quotations 

 from Colorado, Utah, or California. But the birds reach across Nebraska, 

 probably following the Platte into Wyoming, and through Dakota and Mon- 

 tana, being even conducted to Pacific slopes along the northern border of 

 the United States." 



Distinguishing features: Upper parts drab; head, neck, and rump 

 leaden; neck showing changeable metallic tints; chest and sides reddish- 

 brown; other under parts white; length 15-18 inches. 



316. MOURNING DOVE. Zenaidura macroura. 



A regular summer resident of this region, arriving from the south 

 toward the latter part of April, and thence adding its soft cooing to the 

 swelling chorus of wildwood voices. In this neighborhood it frequents the 

 thickets along the water-courses, as the dry prairies appear to offer little 

 attractions to it. In the eastern portions of the county the mourning dove 

 appears to be more widely distributed. Dr. J. A. Allen says that it was 

 abundant everywhere, particularly near the streams. Dr. C. E. McChesney 

 says that at Fort Custer he would daily see hundreds in the woods. Capt. 

 Thorne found it common at Ft. Keogh, and Messrs. Richmond and Knowl- 

 ton report it as very common in south-central Montana. I did not find 

 ic abundant anywhere in the Flathead Lake region. 



Distinguishing features: Upper parts brown, with a bluish tinge; 

 head and neck glossed with changeable metallic tints; lower parts soft 

 drab, changing to pale buff on posterior parts; length 11-13 inches. 

 331. MARSH HAWK. Circus hudsonius. 



The marsh hawk appears to be very generally distributed over the 

 county. It generally arrives from the south early in April, and thence 

 can be observed quartering over the meadows of the bottoms and over the 

 higher prairies in search of its quarry. By the end of April the pair have 

 decided on a suitable site for their home, and can often be seen hovering 

 over it or hunting in the immediate locality. On May 18, 1901, I examined 

 small weed-patch along Big Casino, where I had seen a pair of marsh 

 hawks at almost every visit to the neighborhood, and I soon found the nest. 

 The male became quite threatening as I approached the place, and led 

 me to it by flying over the nest and uttering his cries, to which the sitting 

 female responded by shrill whistles. On that day the nest contained one 

 egg. Re-visiting the nest on May 25, I found five eggs. The female, after 



