BIRDS THAT NEST UPON THE GROUND 

 OR IN TUSSOCKS OF GRASS 



OVENBIRD: Both this bird and the following species construct an arched 

 nest on the ground, often beneath the protecting cover of a small 

 pile of brush or fallen branch, in moist woods of oaks and maples. 

 Frequently the nest is placed close by the edge of a woodland path. 



BLACK AND WHITE WARBLER: As mentioned above the Black and 

 White Warbler nests upon the ground in much the same manner as the 

 Ovenbird. The author has found several nests of this bird that were 

 placed under the projecting edge of a leaf-strewn depression in the oak 

 woods, where at some former time large boulders had been removed. 



SONG SPARROW: The nest of this species is frequently placed in the grassy 

 overhanging bank of a brook, sometimes in a tussock of coarse grass, 

 and occasionally in a low-growing bush. 



VESPER SPARROW: This species builds its nest upon the ground in upland 

 pastures. 



RED-WINGED BLACKBIRD: Tussocks of coarse grass, sedge and clumps 

 of cat's-tail are all favorite nesting sites of this bird in marshes and 

 swampy meadows. Button-ball bushes about the borders of ponds and 

 streams are also chosen as nesting places by this species. 



MEADOW LARK: The nest of the Meadow Lark is placed upon the 

 ground among the tall grasses of the hayfield that form an arch over it. 

 During the operations of mowing, care should be taken to prevent the 

 destruction of the nest by scythe or mower knives, by having your 

 workmen locate the nests, before the operations of the hay harvest are 

 under way. The Meadow Lark is of inestimable value to the farmer as 

 a destroyer of insects injurious to both hay and grain crops, and strong 

 efforts should be made to increase the numbers of this species. 



BOBOLINK: The cheery Bobolink nests upon the ground in the midst of 

 the hayfield where the nest is concealed beneath a tussock or clump of 

 grass. This bird is another valuable friend of the farmer and the same 

 care should be used in avoiding destruction of its nest during the haying- 

 time, as with that of the Meadow Lark. 



BOB- WHITE: While the whistle of the Quail comes up from the field, 

 the wife of the merry piper is quietly brooding her eggs, along the 

 borders of the grain field or mowing land, where she has placed her 

 nest, so kind farmer have a care when the hay or grain crop is about to 

 be harvested. Other places are also chosen as a nesting site by this bird, 

 a clump of low-growing huckleberry or bayberry bushes, the edge of a 

 brush-pile, or the protecting lower rail of the old Virginia fence, still 

 found on some farms. 



[19] 



