Dec, 1883.] 



AND OOLOGIST. 



95 



stramonium.) The eggs, four in number, 

 average 24 X 1 8, in 32ds of an inch. They 

 are white and usually spotted irregularly, 

 with small red, brown, or almost black 

 dots. Some entire sets are pure white, 

 while frequently but one or two eggs have 

 markings. On June 18, 1883, a few days 

 after a severe storm, I found a Bell's Vireo 

 nest upon the ground. It contained four 

 young just hatched. Upon examination I 

 found that the nest with eggs had been 

 torn from its fastening on the branch of a 

 shrub about eighteen inches from the 

 ground. This had evidently been done by 

 the storm while the bird was upon the 

 nest. Instead of deserting her home, she 

 had gathered fresh material and fastened 

 the nest securely to the leaves of some 

 weeds beside which it had lodged. So far 

 as I have observed this Vireo always de- 

 serts her nest when the Cow-bird invades 

 it with her parasitic eggs. — D. E. Tjantz^ 

 Manhattan., JiTarisas. 



Red-headed Woodpeckers. 



Your advice about the red-headed Wood- 

 peckers came too late. I had been watch- 

 ing a pair that had their nest finished for 

 some time, and finally concluded that they 

 must have completed the set, and so 

 opened the hole to find it empty. A sec- 

 ond nest I had my " eye" on was opened 

 by small boys. I still have one left from 

 which I hope to get a set. Mr. Worthing- 

 ton shot one of the birds which belonged 

 to this nest, but I was there to-day and 

 the other bird had secured a new mate 

 and was very much worried when I was 

 near the nest, so I think she has begun to 

 lay. I shall not distub her however for 

 another week as this is my "third and last 

 chance" for a set, and I want to be sure 

 this time. Worthington has shot foiir of 

 these birds this Spring which I think 

 would have bred. I told him he ought 

 not to shoot them, but he didn't think 

 they were going to stay. We had good 

 hick on Gardiner's Island and got a lot of 



Fish Hawks' and Night Herons' eggs. I 

 also found a Woodcock's nest containing 

 one egg, just as we were going to leave. 

 I left it in order to get the full set, and 

 went down again on Wednesday, the 24th, 

 and got the set of three. Incubation was 

 just begim. This is very late for Wood- 

 cock's eggs and must have been a second 

 set. We saw and heard several Great 

 Carolina Wrens on the Island and Yellow- 

 breasted Chats were very common. So 

 far this season I have collected Downy 

 Woodpecker 1-5, Mottled Owl 1-2, 1-4, 2-5; 

 Fish Hawk 6-2, 24-3, 2-4 ; Green Heron 

 2-4 ; Night Heron 5 3, 12-4, 3-5 ; Wood- 

 cock 1-3 ; Kingfisher 4-7 ; also, a Chicka- 

 dee's nest containing 8 eggs. — 3Ioses B. 

 Griffing, Shelter Island, N. Y. May 2Gth, 

 1883. 



Aged Eagle. A Bradenberg peasant not 

 long ago found a large eagle eating the 

 carcass of a dog. He shot the bird, 

 which was black, with white shoulders. 

 On its left foot was a gold ring, on which 

 were cut the letters, still visible, " H. Ks. 

 o. k." underneath which was the word 

 " Eperjes," and on the other side the date 

 " 10, 9, 1827." Eperjes is a town in upper 

 Hungary. 



Age of Owls. In answer to the follow- 

 ing inquiry made of me by Dr. Grabham, 

 of Pontefract, I could only say that I be- 

 lieve birds of the hawk tribe are consid- 

 ered to be long-lived, but that I would ask 

 for more particular information through 

 your columns. It was only a week or two 

 ago that I saw in one of the papers of an 

 eagle having been shot somewhere on the 

 Continent, which from a silver ring round 

 its leg was shown to have been of a great 

 age. [See item above.] 



I have just lost by death a brown owl which has been in 

 my possession twenty-one years and three months. I shall 

 esteem it a great favor to learn from you if this is an unu- 

 sual age for this bird. He was a splendid fellow, and much 

 admired about here. My son has two very fine young birds 

 to succeed him. 



One and the same fate, 7iullo discriniine, 

 befalls the eagle and the osprey. Eheu ! 

 F. <). Morris, in land and Water. 



