78 



ORNITHOLOGIST 



[Vol. lO^No. 5 



that time — an instance, doubtless, of the rapiditj' 

 with wliich some speciea follow man as he ex- 

 tends the area of civilization. 



At least one species ot Slirike is common and 

 breeds, building its nest largely of the stalks of a 

 species of OimphitUum in the branches of the low, 

 scrubby oaks that cover the sand-hills. 



The Goldfinch, {Astragalinus tristis.) is fairly 

 common on the edges of the bluffs. 



The little B lywing, {P<j'itcetes gramliieun), is one 

 of the most fauiiliir of prairie birds, and nightly 

 sings a sublued kind of vesper-song as the sun 

 goes down. Its mi-<t notable peculiarity, how- 

 ever, is its habit of flitting along a trail or path- 

 way in front of an advancing wagon or person, 

 alighting every few yards. As it is but compara- 

 tively recently that there have been any human 

 trails over the prairies, it seems probable that this 

 proceeding is a relic of a habit acquired by the 

 bird of flitting before the buffaloes along the 

 l)aths made by those animals. 



About tlie second week in September the Snow- 

 liirdsor Juncos, (Junco hycmrdin,) became abund- 

 ant, and remained so for at least a month. 



Tlie B)bolink, (DAklfmyx oryzieorm,) is of- 

 course common. I saw birds in both the black 

 and buff plumage together near Carberry on 

 August HOth. 



The Red-winged Blackbird, (Ai/elivuK ph(pnieeuK) 

 is very abundant, and breeds in tlie rushes round 

 most of the lakes; collecting into flocks later. 



The gorgeous Baltimore Onn\e,(rcU;nisgalbul(i,) 

 is far from rare, and its hanging nest is often to 

 be found in the Poplar trees on the sand-hills. 



No bird is more characteristic of the prairies 

 than the Meadow Lark, (Stiirnelhi negUcta.) It 

 is ver3' common in Summer, and breeds abun- 

 dantly. Its clear, musical whistle (almost, it 

 not quite, equal to the song of the Nightingale) is 

 uttered by the bird either when upon the wing, 

 tlie ground, or a tree, and may be heard for a 

 great distance. Towards the end of August, 

 though the birds had mix left, they had largely 

 ceased whistling; but the arrival of a few warm 

 days, about the lOtli of September, set them off 

 again for a time. When I left, about the middle 

 of October, there were still a few small family- 

 parties about, though the great majority had gone 

 south. In tlie previous year (1883) Mr. Seton 

 says the main body left about the 17th of Octo- 

 ber. It is decidedly a shy bird, even in a country 

 where most birds are notably less wary than in 

 England ; and, common as the bird is, it is no 

 easy matter to obtain a specimen just when one 

 wants. As Mr. Seton remarked to me, it bears 

 truly heraldic markings on its breast — oi\ ii chev- 



ron sable. Late in July, I shot a young specimen 

 with a large, festering sore upon its breast, doubt- 

 less caused by its having accidentally flown 

 against a spike on one of the numerous " liarb- 

 wire" fences on which this bird frequently perches. 

 Not long after, I shot a Purple Grackle with an 

 old wound on its head, which was probably occa- 

 sioned by the same means. I have often thought 

 what a capital thing it would be to introduce the 

 Meadow Lark into England. So far as the plum- 

 age and song are concerned, it would take rank 

 among our brightest.colored and most admired 

 songsters ; while its hardy nature would allow of 

 its remaining with us the whole }'ear round, as 

 indeed it often does in Ontario and other districts 

 farther south than Manitoba. Perfectly harmless 

 and accustomed to grassy countries, it would 

 quickly become naturalized -in our meadows, 

 where it would find an abundance of insect food, 

 and would doubtless soon increase sufficiently in 

 numbers to serve, if need be, as a game and food 

 bird, as it largely does in the LTnited States. No 

 other songster that I ever heard equals this bird 

 in the sweetness and mellowness of its notes. 



Two specimens of Grackle, the Purple, (Quin- 

 calus piirpuretiH.) and the Rusty, (Scolecopluujus 

 ferrugineust) are excessively abundant, and often 

 collect into enormous flocks after the breeding- 

 season. Under the name of " Blackbirds" they 

 share in common the curses of the settlers, on 

 account of the great damage they do in the har- 

 vest-field. They are both very noisy birds. 



I did not meet with Brewer's Blackbird, (Scok- 

 cop/ingus cynnocephiihiit) in Manitoba, but shot a 

 specimen — probably a young male — at Maple 

 Creek. .TOT miles west of Winnipeg, on Jul}- 10th, 

 1H84. 



(Trt })€ VontiHHcd.) 



Brief Notes. 



Notes pnoM Templeton, Pennsylvania. — Our position 

 is peculiarly favorable for observation, bein^ close beside 

 the Allegheny River, which, beint; the first river west of the 

 Allegheny Mountains flowing south, is a favorite path of 

 the migratory birds. Ten miles east or west of the river not 

 half the birds can be seen that are common upon every 

 bush and tree on the hillsides immediately facing the river. 

 From our no'e boolc for 1881, we take the following : First 

 Robin, February 11th. On the 2l8t, saw a pair of Broad- 

 winged Hawks mating; first Bluebird, 23d; Crow, 28th; 

 March 5th, Wild Ducks seen, kind unknown ; 12th, Wild 

 Geese; 16(h, Crow Blackbird; Meadow Lark; 17th, House 

 Pewee; 18th, Carolina Dove; 21st, Song Sparrow. Then 

 followed rough weather until April, when on the 15th we 

 noteTowhee Bunting; 23d, Brov.n Thrasher; Mth, Water 

 Thrush ; 2.5th, Wood Robin, Rose-breasted Grosbeak, Cat- 

 bird and Bank Swallow ; 26th, Baltimore Oriole, Kingbird ; 

 30th, Scarlet Tanager, Yellow-throated Vireo and Common 

 Yellow Warbler; May 5th, White-eyed Vireo; Sth, Indigo 

 Bird, female Rose-breasted Grosbeaks ; 13th, Cuckoo. 



