10 



ORNITHOLOGIST 



[Vol. 10-No. 1 



Notes from Taftsville, Vt. 



liY C. O, THAfY. 



The occui-roncc of the Wliiti; Iliis, {Kitdoriiinis 

 (dbtis,) so far north of their usual range may seem 

 almost phenomenal, still a fine example of the 

 species was taken in South Woodstock, Vt.,some 

 six or seven years ago the past Summer, (tlie ex- 

 act date is not readily obtainable), and is now in 

 the possession of my friend, W. L. Damon, Esq., 

 of Woodstock, Vl. 



Four species of birds liave been noted by mo 

 the i)ast season for the first time at this place, viz : 

 Wood Thrush, (Uiilorichhi miistelinti.) two birds. 

 May loth ; Kentucky Wiirbler, (0;)";-"/'/iw/»)'///«w/,) 

 May l!)lh ; Vcllow-bellied Flycatcher, (A')«p«(to»«.c 

 flucifeniris,) Ireiiuenlly seen throughout the 

 Summer, first (jceuirenee May 35lh; Mourning 

 Warbler, (Geothhipin philiiiMiiliid), Sept. 30th. 



Among the more prominent autumnal migrants, 

 the first While-throated Sparrow, (/.tmntrichUi 

 (illtinilliii,) came Sept. KUh, they were (common by 

 the 30th, and c(nitinued so tmlil Oct. 5lh, and oc- 

 casionally one up to Oct. 34th, wlicn they were 

 plentiful and disappeared. 



Oct. 4th, brought AVhite-crowncd Sparrows, 

 {Z. Iriic/j hi/<). They continued fairly common — 

 in much larger numbers than I have ever seen 

 them before — until their final d"parture Oct, 34th. 



The first Fox-colored Sparrow, (/'c/.wj'cHrt il/ii- 

 en,) appeared Oct. 14th, by the 37th they came in 

 immense numbers, lingering until the 30lli. One 

 individual was conspicuous among its fellows by 

 having a white tail and primaries, and very light 

 upper plumage. This species has occurred here 

 only as a rare migrant before. 



Blue Snowbirds, (Jiinco /ii/emolis.) were com- 

 mon from the last of Sept. to Xov, 1st, Tree 

 Sparrows, (Spizella montfinn,) were common 

 throughout Oct. The northern influx of Robins, 

 (Merula migratoria,) occurred Oct. Olh to 9th, in- 

 clusive, thousands of them passing tliis place. 

 Large numbers of Bluebirds, (S'alia sMit,) passed 

 from Oct. 8th to 16th. Yellow-rump Warblers, 

 (Dendroeca coronata,) were also uncommonly abun- 

 dant from Oct. 7lh to IGth. A little snow on tlie 

 morning of the 16th, caused large numbers of 

 them to seek shelter about the buildings. Fol- 

 lowing the very abundant Autumnal migration 

 has been a period almost destitute of bird life, but 

 for an occasional Jay, Hairy, and Downy Wood- 

 pecker, Nuthatch, and Chickadee. From the 

 number of Owls sent me in the past few weeks, 

 it would seem that they are much more plentiful 

 than a year ago. 



The Red-bellied ^A^oodpecke^. 



(C'l iiliinin rari/liiiiix) — (i.i.n) sw. 



liV n. E. I.., MANHATTAN, KAN. 



In this part of Kansas four species of Picidae 

 are common and i)ermancnt residents. These 

 are tlie Downy, the Hairy, and the Ited-bellied 

 Woodpecker and the Yellow-shafted Flicker. 

 Tlie first and the last mentioned are more abund- 

 ant than tlie others. The Ked-headed Wood- 

 pecker is a common Summer resident, rarely re- 

 maining later than Sept. 1. It is also a late arrival 

 in Spring migration. The Hed-shafled Flickers 

 {Colnpti-a iiuriiliia and /ti/bn'dim) are rather com- 

 mon in Winter. The Plicated Woodpecker, al- 

 though common in more-heavily timbered por- 

 tions of the State, is rarehere, only two specimens 

 having been observed in a residence of six years. 

 Of the Yellow-bellied Woodpecker but one 

 specimen has ever been observed in this locality. 



There is so much uniformity iu the breeding 

 habits of our Picidae that one would think there 

 is nothing new to learn. Yet I feel that I have 

 been amjily repaid for the casual attention given 

 to o\u' common CmtiiniK cnroliiiiis.. Knowing 

 that many of the readers of the O. and O. have 

 not had opportunities for an intimate acquaint- 

 ance with it, I take for their benefit, a few notes 

 from my records. 



One of the first facts to be noted about our 

 western Woodpeckers is their familiarily and 

 boldness even in the breeding .season. None but 

 the Hairy seem to have the retiring habits so 

 often noticed in the east. The Flicker, the Red- 

 headi'd, and the Downy Woodpeckers come into 

 the door-yards in the most thickly settled parts 

 of our towns, and excavate holes for their nests 

 in the decayed limbs of shade trees. The first 

 two frequently make holes in the cornices of 

 buildings, and rear their young under the same 

 roof that shelters us. Singularly enough, the 

 Red-bellied Woodpecker sliares in this familiarity, 

 and receives' the protection of those whom he 

 favors with his noisy company. 



My first acquaintance witli its nest was in 1883, 

 when I found a nest near the Big Blue river. 

 This nest was in a large Elm tree which grew in 

 an open space not far from a fai'm-house, and 

 near the edge of the timber. The excavation was 

 in a large dead limb, about twelve feet from the 

 ground. On climbing to it, I found three fresh 

 eggs, and left them for the full set which I found 

 to be five eggs. These were taken May 13. Dur- 

 ing last season I found about a dozen nests of 

 these species from which I collected several sets. 

 The nests present nothing new in choice of 



