March, 1885.] 



AND OOLOGIST. 



37 



Wc have shown llic lieqiifiny with which 

 suveral supposed resklenis wainler, and Professor 

 Newton tells us in his able artiele in the new 

 edition of the "Encyclopaedia Britannica" that 

 " lluie is scarcely a bird of either the paliearctic 

 or ncarctie rci;ion, whose habits are at all well 

 kuouii, of which much the same may not be said: 

 and hence we are led to the conclusion that every 

 bird of the northern hemisphere is, to a greater 

 or less decree, mii^ratory in some part or other of 

 its range." 



The character of the soil and site also influen- 

 ces bird life, and therefore migration. There are 

 birds of the swamps and streains, of the moun- 

 tains, tlie deserts and the grassy plains. Speaking 

 g<'ucrally the migrants that resort to our shores in 

 Wiuti'r, i-onic from the northern sub-region already 

 indicated. Oiu' Summer migrants, the Swallow, 

 t'uckoo. Nightingale and otliers more or less 

 familiar, come from the southern sub-region, from 

 the Mediler.inean basin, from the Nile as far as 

 the lirst cataract, the Pyrenees, Alps, Balkans, 

 Caucasus and other districts of wliat Mr. Dresser 

 has designated the European bird region. It is 

 interesting to observe at what a leisurely pace 

 ndgrations proceed in some districts, how rapid it 

 becomes under a pressing emergency, how 

 thorough and complete the movement of the 

 birds is in localities where the food supply abso- 

 lutely fails, while in others it is only partial, a 

 limited bird ixipulation always remaining. The 

 migrants i|uit thi' burning iilainsot Central Africa 

 on the same |)rinciiial that they leave the in- 

 clement North. In each district the animal and 

 vegetable food which abounils in one case in 

 Winter, in the oilier in Summer, entirely fails 

 liiem, and their banishment is cimiplete. But the 

 manner of li-:iviug ditfers, since there is rarely any 

 urgency in the e.\it from the warmer countries, 

 where the period of migration trequent.ly e.vtcnds 

 over several weeks. In Autumn, on the contrary, 

 the climate ol the, north sometimes closes up all 

 food resources suddenly, and at such times a con- 

 tinual stream of birds arrives on our shores, 

 showing how great the pressure in the rear must 



be A curious example of 



the occasional adventures of migrants occurs in 

 the case of American birds, especially the shore 

 birds frcmi North America, which sometimes pay 

 us visits, that the naturalists appreciate, though 

 the birds themselves had no intention of crossing 

 the Atlantic. It is curious too that the.se birds 

 usually appear on our eastern coasts, and not on 

 t'.ie shores nearest their homes 



Avoiding further analysis of an abstruse ques- 

 tion, we must be content with conclusions which 

 may thus be briefly summarized : 



In districts where the supply of food never 

 fails, the instinct of migration could never have 



been developed. We may look for it in its lowest 

 form in those home-keeping birds whose flittings 

 in search of food are least extended ; and in its 

 highest state of development in such travellers as 

 the Swallow or the Nightingale, the Wild Swan 



or the Stork 



But when all is said, science has done but little 

 to explain the extraordinary faculties which im- 

 pel and enable the bird creation to encircle the 

 globe, to seek for food and warmth in imknown 

 lands, to steer their course with unerring pre- 

 cision across the depths of air and tracts of ocean, 

 and to return in season to their wonted nests. 



Rose-breasted Grosbeak. 



(Zitimlodid liidin'iriiinii.) 

 I'.Y C. O. TK.\CY, T.\FTSVir.l,E, \ I'. 



This bird is a fairly common Summer resideul 

 of this locality. Within the memory of the wri- 

 ter it was very rare. Mr. Zadock Thompson did 

 not include it in his list of Vermont biids in his 

 " Thompson's Vermont," iinblished in 1842. It 

 seems probable, however, that it was known in 

 the State before that time. (Will any one having 

 knowledge of its early apjiearance in Vermont, 

 kindly report the same to the O. and O. or the 

 writer?) The sexes arrive together. The male 

 is at once conspicuous, both by his beautiful pluir.- 

 age and melodious song. While essentially a 

 forest bird — and one must see and hear him in 

 his forest home to see his full beauty, and hear 

 him in his happiest song — they often come into 

 the orchard and shade trees about our homes. 

 Along the lightly timbered river banks and road- 

 si les they And their favorite breeding places, but 

 these must be at no great distance from the more 

 heavily timbered forest. The forked toj) of a 

 sapling is usually selected for a nesting place. 

 Sometinies, however, the horizontal branch of a 

 large forest tree is chosen. The nest is a frail 

 structure, made of fine dry twigs and a few grass 

 or weed stalks. Sometimes only twigs are used, 

 and these are nearly always Hemlock. It is sel- 

 dom less than eight, or more than twenty feet 

 from the ground. The full complement of eggs is 

 usually four, sometimes but three. Dimensions 

 vary from 1.x. 75 to .OOx.TO of an inch; color green- 

 ish blue, spotted with dilTerent shades of brown. 



Most of their eggs are laid the first week in 

 June. The earliest and latest dates that I have 

 taken full fresh sets are June 3d and 23d. Botn 

 sexes incubate, the male performing his full share of 

 this important duty. My records show that where 

 I have made observations in thirty-four cases, the 

 nests were occupied by males twenty-three times 

 and females eleven. By the second week in Sep,- 

 temberthcy have all depu'ted for the south. 



