March 1887.] 



AND OOLOGIST. 



37 



where wheat roots had been planted but had 

 not as yet come up. Their habits and ways of 

 feeding while here reminded us strongly of lit- 

 tle Plovers. 



January 8th, we shot two Thrashers, and two 

 more on January 28th, and also observed the 

 species four times in January, although this is 

 another species we only expect to see in mild 

 winters and only occasionally then. 



Both Pine and Purple Finches have been tol- 

 erably common all winter, but the Brown 

 Creeper has been scarce since Cliristmas though 

 common till then. 



Yellow-rump Warblers have been quite com- 

 mon all winter and there has been no decrease 

 in the usual supply of Pine Warblers. A Red- 

 poll Warbler was shot on January 5th, and a 

 Catbird was seen the day before. 



Robins have been observed in small numbers 

 all winter, and for one week, from January 6tli 

 to 13, while the snow was on the ground, they 

 were quite common, feeding on frost grapes 

 and the berries of the red cedar, holly and Hen 

 decidua, in company with large numbers of 

 bluebirds ; but when the snow disappeared they 

 also departed. 



On February 9th, we received by mail from 

 Kittrells, a winter resort some thirty-flve miles 

 northeast of here, a King Rail (Balhis elegans) 

 in the meat, which had been killed there the 

 day before, — another bird we do not expect to 

 see in this section during the winter. 



A single Wilson's Snipe was seen on January 

 17th and 18th and five more (probably the first 

 of the migrants) on February 12th, and a Green- 

 winged Teal was killed here the last day of 

 January. 



Killdeer Plover have been unusually scarce 

 all the fall and winter, only a few solitary indi- 

 viduals having been observed. Both the White- 

 bellied and Red-bellied Nuthatches have been 

 entirely unobserved since November. The 

 Brown-headed species, which never seem to va- 

 rj' in numbers to any extent, having been the 

 only nuthatches observed at all this winter. 



Redwing Blackbirds have been quite common 

 all winter, frequenting the peanut fields and 

 securing a plentiful supply of food from the 

 peas left in the ground. 



On February 12th, we had brought to us to 

 mount, a partial albino Redwing, which was 

 only interesting because the cause of the albi- 

 nism became evident on skinning. This bird 

 had the two first primaries on the left wing 

 and a small patch of feathers on the left side of 

 the breast white. On skinning, the whole left 

 side of the breast was found to be in a diseased 



condition, smelling almost putrid; the cause of 

 which was evidently a wound, probably a gun- 

 shot wound, situated directly under the white 

 patch. In spite of this, however, the bird was 

 in good plumage, not at all thin or emaciated. 



Historical Ground. 



BY W^ALTER HOXIE, FROGMORE, S. C. 



"I met a queer, half crazy fellow at Bull's 

 Point one time," said our oldest inhabitant. 

 "He had on leather pants, and was crawling 

 around in the sand after oystercatchers and all 

 sorts of no account birds. His name was Au- 

 dubon." 



Since I heard the above, that Point has seemed 

 to me a spot of hallowed ground. Suppose we 

 go there in May. 



Along the outer ridge of sand the Wilson's 

 Plover {Ochtliodrumus vnJsonius) breeds, and 

 they lay their three eggs in a deeply hollowed 

 spot of loose sand. I have been told of four 

 eggs, but cannot remember ever finding that 

 number myself. 



On flat places, where bits of shell abound, 

 the Least Terns {Sterna antillarum) deposit 

 their one or two treasures — three occasionally. 

 The eggs are very hard to see, and more so the 

 callow young. I have found the latter but 

 once. 



Farther back, towai'ds the sand hills we will 

 look for the Oystercatcher's (Hannatopus palU- 

 atus) nest. A slight mound is usually selected, 

 and the eggs deposited on the top; usually 

 three in number, but sometimes only two. The 

 tracks of the birds are the best guide to follow, 

 and I usually see the eggs from quite a distance 

 more easily than close up to them. 



The Willet (Sijmphemia semipalmata) rises in 

 a great flurry and alarm from her four big eggs 

 among the high grass. If you feel sure that 

 you have noted the exact sjjot tread carefully 

 as you approach it, for two to one, you will 

 tread on the eggs just one side or the other of 

 the place where you thought they were. 



Not so with the Least Bittern {Ardetta exilis). 

 She goes dangling oft' from among some high 

 reeds, and her nest is as plainly seen as a four- 

 quart measure. 



The bare high places are favorite spots for 

 the Night Hawks (Chordeiles popetue)^ and the 

 Sea-side Finch {Ammodranms maritimus) fre- 

 quents the the grassy swamps,but although the 

 birds are quite numerous I have yet to find their 



