94 



ORNITHOLOGIST 



[Vol. 8-No. 12 



as an an-ow and noiseless as a floating 

 feather, he strack ont for the intruder, 

 knocking him over on the ground. For a 

 moment it was a confused heap of cliaff 

 and owls, then the^r parted and looked 

 each other squarely in the eye, then Scoj) 

 with one wing drawn out before his head 

 advanced sidelong to renew the attack. 

 Not wishing to provoke hostilities further 

 I removed Asia from the enclosure, and 

 right glad was he to come. 



The young Scops are at this date, Oct. 

 27, just commencing to come out in red 

 plumage, having a number of feathers so 

 streaked on their back and wings. As I 

 should have previously mentioned incuba- 

 tion occupied in this case only twenty-two 

 days. I have never heard of these owls 

 breeding in captivity before, yet if they or 

 any other sj^ecies have done so, a record 

 of such would be appreciated by — F. IF. 

 Carpenter, Rehoheth, Mass. 



Snow Buntings and Pileated Wood- 

 peckers. 

 During a tramp over the mountains 

 north of this place early in October I saw 

 large flocks of Snow Buntings (Flectro- 

 phaoies nivalis) and was informed by a 

 "native" that they were to be found all 

 through the spring and summer. Strong 

 circumstantial evidence in favor of their 

 breeding there, if he told the truth — and I 

 have no reason to doubt it. It is certainly 

 cold enough out there, even in mid-summer 

 to suit the most Boreal bird of my acquain- 

 tance. I also saw two Pileated Wood- 

 peckers, '^((jffyfotom?/^ pileatus.) I think 

 they were wanderers, for the land has 

 been pretty well cleared by fires and log- 

 gers. I never saw but one of these birds 

 alive before. It was in the beginning of 

 last winter, near Dover, Del. There had 

 been a " freeze" the night before and all 

 the small puddles, and a good many of 

 the big ones had a pretty thick coat of ice. 

 While walking near a creek I heard some- 

 thing pounding on the ice, and then an an- 

 gry " squeal " unmistakeably a bird's. A 



few steps brought him in sight. He was- 

 down on the ice covering a small inlet, 

 pounding till I thought he would break 

 his bill, and stopj^ing eveiy few seconds 

 to squeal. I could not see what he want- 

 ed, unless it was water. After several 

 minutes of this occupation he flew up and 

 lit on a tree directly in front of me, and 

 not over six feet away, and pounded it. 

 Then with a series of cries he flew into the 

 swamp and that was the last I saw of him, 

 but his whole performance was extremely 

 ludicrous. — Okas. D. Gibson, Kenovo, Pa. 



Bell's Vireo — {Vireo belli.) 



This is the most abundant Vireo in Kan 

 sas, where, during the breeding season, its 

 song may be heard from every copse and 

 hedge. It arriTCS from the South, at this 

 station, about the first week of May and is 

 soon dispered over the country, wherever 

 there is shi-ubbeiy to supply its favorite 

 insect food. Its song resembles that of 

 the Wliite-eyed Vireo, but seems to me to 

 be more cheerful. It sings during the en- 

 tire day ; even on the warmest da3'S, when 

 other birds are silent. About the first 

 week in June one may find nests containing 

 the full complement of eggs. June 1st is 

 my earliest date. The nest is but a few 

 feet from the ground, attached to a hoii 

 zontal branch, in true Vireo style. It is 

 much more compact and more strongly 

 built than that of any other Vireo with which 

 I am acquainted. The materials of the nest 

 are constant, being fibrous substances fas- 

 tened together by the bird's saliva. In 

 the lining only have I found variation. 

 The usual lining is, like that of the other 

 Vireos, composed of fine grasses ; but in 

 two nests the lining was of long horse-hair. 

 I have never found any downy substances 

 in the lining, as described by some writers. 

 The osage orange, prickly ash, wild plum? 

 and elm are favorite nesting places for 

 this species, but I have foimd the nest on 

 apple, peach, and willow trees, and even on 

 the branch of a Jamestown weed, {Dutura 



