90 



ORNITHOLOGIST 



[Vol. 10-No. 6 



bird that I took to be one of the small Thrushes 

 alighted on the lateral branch of a maple sapling, 

 seven or eight yards from me, and partially hid- 

 den liy intervening growth. I at once shot it, and 

 on picking it up was overjoyed to find myself in 

 possession of the first Swainson's Warbler I liad 

 ever seen, and, as far as I am aware, the first that 

 has ever been obtained north of Charleston, S. C. 

 The specimen was somewhat mutilated, the tip of 

 lower mandible being shot away, the right tar- 

 sus broken about the middle and the neck rather 

 badly shot. However, the long sought for prize 

 was obtained, and, although not a first class speci- 

 men, it was still cpiite sufficiently good to admit 

 of absolute identification. I have perseveringly 

 hunted the locality since then, but have, as yet, 

 been unable to secure or even get a sight of other 

 specimens. As before stated, the specimen pro- 

 cured perched on a small branch and was shot at 

 once, giving it no opportunity for indulging in 

 song. The notes of this bird are therefore still 

 strange to me, although I have kept my ears con- 

 stantly on the alert to detect the, to me, unknown 

 song of (II. Swaimoni). 

 Description and dimensions are as follows : 

 Ilehiiintlierus Sicniiuoni, $ , New Berne, N. C, 

 April 13, '85. L 5.55, W 2.80, E 8.70, T 2.05, 

 Tar. .75, Tel. .70. Crown and nape reddish brown, 

 shading into olive, very slightly tinged with 

 brown on back, wing and upper tail coverts with 

 more reddish brown than the back, under jiarts 

 dusky lemon, crissum white, sides dull olive, 

 sides of bi'east dull ashy olive, superciliary stripe 

 dirty white, legs and feet flesh colored. 



Now that one specimen has been procured, I 

 have great hopes of adding more before the Sum- 

 mer has gone, as I imagine this locality to be fa- 

 vorable for the nesting of this bird. 



Cassin's Purple Finch. 



(Carpodacus cassini.) 



BY H. O. SMITH, JR., DENVER, COLOnADO. 



This Spring the writer first made tlie acquain- 

 tance of Cassin's Purple Finch. It was on the 

 morning of Feb. 26th — a bright, warm day for 

 the time of the year that I took my gun and 

 started for the woods. I had scarcely entered 

 them when the loud clear song of the House 

 Finch, (Carpodacus frontalix), came to me from 

 the air above, and looking around I saw three in- 

 dividuals about to alight in the top of a cotton- 

 wood not far off. Thinking they were worth 

 trying for, I approached and succeeded in bring- 

 ing two of them down. On picking tliem up I 

 was surprised at their large size, and it immedi- 



ately occured to me that I held in my hand no 



less a bird than the female of Cassin's Purple 

 Finch. 



Placing them carefully in my game-bag, I 

 again started on and soon had the satisfaction of 

 bringing down a male, which from what I had 

 read of the spccie.s — cleared away all doubt in 

 m}' mind as to their identity. Securing ni}' bird, 

 I again started, and while crossing a field grown 

 up with weeds, I discovered .several more females 

 in company with Tree Sparrows, and on further 

 notice discovered a beautiful male. 



Moving cautiously along to get within range, 

 what was my surprise when at least twenty indi- 

 viduals of the species flew up from among the 

 tall weeds and alighted in a box-elder not fifty 

 feet from me. I stood motionless, observing the 

 various movements of my new acquaintances 

 vdi\\ the feeling every ornithologist has when he 

 sees before him a species he never saw alive be- 

 fore. My Finches soon rose into the air and left 

 the field with loud cries of alarm. Looking 

 around I discovered the destroyer of my beauti- 

 ful picture in the .shape of the Great-northern 

 Shrike or Butcher Bird, who came sailing in upon 

 them, bringing consternation with him. 



Later in the day, I .saw a flock of one hundred 

 or more which alighted amongst the weeds which 

 were from si.v to eight feet high. I obtained 

 eight specimens, and it is needless to .laj' I felt 

 more lenient towards tlie Shrike on going home 

 that night. 



On March 3d, I made another visit to the same 

 place and found the Finches in flocks of hun- 

 dreds. In the early morning, flocks kept com- 

 ing down from a great height and settling upon 

 the siui-flower stalks, feeding on the seeds. 



I had no opportunity of vi.siting the place 

 again until March 25th, when I foimd the major- 

 ity had departed. I however saw a number of 

 flocks of fifty or more, but on April 4th none 

 were seen at all. 



Hawks in Greenpeld, Mass. — On the 13th of 

 April I saw a Rough-legged Hawk in the posses- 

 sion of a boy, which I bought and set up for the 

 Society here. It is, I believe, in the light plum- 

 age. The earliest Hawk's eggs collected here this 

 Spring were on the 19th of April, Red-shouldered, 

 three in number and with very pretty chocolate 

 blotches. On the 28th of April, six members of 

 the Natural History Society went to Mt. Sugar- 

 loaf, and made a successful trip, getting a set of 

 four beautifully colored eggs. The nest was in 

 the same place as the last we secured the eggs 

 Irom last season.— '5. IF. Comstock. 



