April 1887.] 



A^D OOLOGIST. 



61 



My Holiday. 



1?Y WALTER IIOXIE. 



Christmas was truly a red letter day for me. 

 I was oft' and away in the woods once more. No 

 hissing of steam and madly pulsating engine ; 

 no chaos of intricate gliding belts and rattling 

 cotton gins, which have been the accompani- 

 ments of my daily toil for months. It was a 

 bright cold morning before sunrise. Little 

 films of fog floated along the water and hung 

 about the marsh. As we rowed along in the 

 early light a big flock of Boat-tailed Grackles 

 rose from a distant point and passed high over 

 our heads to their distant feeding grounds. 



My companion, who I trust is a future orni- 

 thologist, took a "sight" on one but de(!ided 

 that he was too high, then some wary ducks 

 led us a little way from our course, but it was 

 time well spent for I had an oppoilunity for a 

 short sermon with a Sharp-tailed Finch and a 

 Long-billed Marsh Wren for a text, both cling- 

 ing to the same long swaying stem. My audi- 

 ence thougli single was eager and appreciative. 

 Pushing and paddling through some narrow 

 and intricate passages we came out to a big 

 peat, which the flood tide was just beginning 

 to cover. Here I decoyed a tern with a piece 

 of newspaper, and ray young friend proved that 

 he possessed one of the essential qualities of 

 the coming ornithologist by collecting him in 

 good style. As the tide rose and covered one 

 by one, all the little detached oyster banks, it 

 was a diftlcult matter to choose a mark among 

 the variety of birds which were continually 

 passing and alighting within range. Willet, 

 Curlew, Godwits, Sunderlings, "Peeps," Terns 

 and Gulls were in confusing numbers on every 

 side, and neither our larder or cabinet was ne- 

 glected. R., made the "banner shot" at last 

 when he brought down three Oyster catchers, 

 but I think was sick of his prizes before we had 

 secured them, foi- they were idl wing-tipped 

 and led us a laborious chase. They dove and 

 then flew under water, turning up their gaudy 

 eyes, and avoiding us with exasperating dex- 

 terity. 



At last we had them aboard and started on 

 our return trip ; this was through a part of the 

 marsh which was new to me, but R., proved 

 himself an excellent pilot, and also pointed out 

 all the good spots for marsh birds, the best 

 places for fish, and the hundred and one other 

 choice little secrets that every real live boy de- 

 lights to impart to the old gray-headed lads 

 who give him an apijreciative ear. 



The Sense of Smell in the American 

 Vultures. 



BY WALTER HOXIE. 



In a recent article in The Auk, the writer 

 argues that our Vultures possess a highly de- 

 veloped sense of smell. My own observations 

 point to a contrary conclusion and will quote 

 one or two observations. 



Last suuuner an ox died on the road and was 

 hauled into some thick bushes. The cart to 

 which he was attached, was backed in after him 

 and for several days the carcass was thus 

 screened from view, but was fearfully apparent 

 to the dullest nose. Numerous dogs feasted on 

 it, but no vultures came until the cart was 

 removed, when being in plain view through the 

 numerous openings into which it had been 

 dragged, they came in myriads and in a short 

 time nothing was to be seen but the bones. 

 Had the Vultures possessed even a dull sense 

 of smell and known how to use it as a guide to 

 their repast, they would, in my opinion, have 

 discovered their prey three days sooner than 

 they did. 



1 once raised a pair of young Turkey Vul- 

 tures. When offered food they manifested great 

 excitement and would tumble awkA\ardly into 

 the pan in which it was placed. But when tlie 

 pan was covered up, though full of tempting 

 and od(jriferous oftal, the,y maintained their 

 usual dull and sleeiJ}^ demeanor. I have even 

 placed them upon a newspaper which covered 

 the entrails of a duck without tlieir manifesting 

 the faintest sign of a knowledge of the presence 

 of food in the vicinity. 



Now as to their keenness of sight and i)ruin|)t- 

 ness in discovering their pi'cy by that means. 



Last May, I sat in a tent skinning a Bhick 

 Vulture. In plain view and distant somevvliat 

 over half a mile was Buzzard Island, with some 

 forty or fiftj' of the birds perched upon the tree- 

 tops. As I removed the body and cast it 

 through the entrance of the tent, evei'y broad 

 wing was expanded and the whole flock came 

 hurrying towards the bloody carcass, even be- 

 fore it had ceased to roll along the ground. 



The Bluebird as a Mimic. 



IJV W. E. SAUNDERS, LONDON, ONTARIO. 



On March 12th, 1886, while looking for the 

 earliest migrants in a small piece of woods about 

 four miles west of here I saw a Bluebird in a 



