Vermont Bird Club 25 



The ground color of the eggs ranges from greenish-white to 

 medium grey. The ever present dark brown markings, in spots and 

 splashes, may almost conceal the lighter color. Many examples show 

 the brown sprinkled quite uniformly over the entire shell. The mark- 

 ings always tend to be darkest at the largest end of the egg. A nest I 

 once found contained four eggs, which were nearly free from mark- 

 ings, the latter showing but faintly on the clay-colored shell of the 

 greater end. Such sets are quite rare. T&e average measurements of 

 the eggs are about 0.80 in length by 0.57 in width. 



The first egg is deposited from one to six days after the nest is 

 completed. The remaining eggs are laid at the rate of one a day, or 

 one every two days. The young appear after twelve or fourteen days 

 of incubation, usually all the eggs hatching the same day. The young 

 birds remain in the nest about the same length of time required for 

 incubation, and do not leave the nest, unless disturbed or frightened, 

 until they are ready for their first short flight. A second or third 

 brood may be reared during the summer months, the parents seldom 

 using the old nest for this purpose. 



NOTES ON BIRDS 



From paper by Edith M. Esterbrook, describing a two months' outing 

 in Newfoundland and Labrador in 1913 



One day as we were taking a nine-mile bird walk over to the vil- 

 lage of Stephen ville (Newfoundland), people who met us on the way 

 invariably remarked on the fine warm weather, although we were 

 walking with our coats on and were none too warm if we sat down 

 anywhere for a moment's rest. We were rewarded with winter wrens 

 and Lincoln sparrows on that walk; and near the hotel crossbills and 

 myrtle warblers were nesting, the former having a wonderful clear 

 ringing note, — peet-a-te-weet-a-te-weet, followed by a flourish of trills. 



One pretty walk through the spruce woods led us to the vicinity 

 of a snipe's nest, and we had an opportunity to hear the whinnying of 

 the bird as she circled about high over our heads. Horned larks were 

 there, and the graceful black-backed gulls were constantly seen wheel- 

 ing high overhead, also the glaucous gull, with its shining white plu- 

 mage and its mocking "Ha, Ha" occasionally hurled at us from the 

 heights. 



