78 



ORKITHOLOGIST 



[Yol. 12-No. 5 



pole from a point at an angle of forty-five de- 

 grees and at a height of tliree or four hundred 

 feet. The entire descent is made with wings 

 closed tightly against the sides; and often the 

 most graceful deflection from a direct line is 

 accomplished in order to reach the entrance to 

 a gourd or a box that may chance to be in a po- 

 sition contrary to the point of descent. In 

 these aei-ial races, for they are nothing else, 

 I have observed that the l)ird which arrives 

 earliest in the spring and makes first choice of 

 a nesting-place, always leads, seeming to be 

 afraid that some other member of the company 

 will out-strip him, seize and take possession of 

 his own particular property. This leader inva- 

 riably terminates his descent only by plung- 

 ing into his little room, as if to renew his 

 claims and assert anew his right of posses- 

 sion ; but he no sooner enteres than he emerges 

 again and is as light hearted and garrulous as 

 before. 



The gregarious nature of these little birds is 

 food for thought to the ornithological student, 

 while the perfect harmonj^ in which they dwell 

 togethei" is a characteristic that nuist attract 

 the attention of the most thoughtless ob- 

 server. Being sensitive to cold they not in- 

 frequently sutter in consequence of the cool 

 weather that sometimes suc(;eeds their early 

 arrival. After a cool spell of wind and rain 

 once that lasted two or three days, 1 counted 

 ten emerging one l)ehind another, from a single 

 large gourd. 



About the first of May nest-building begins; 

 a piece of labor that devolves mainly upon the 

 female, her liege in his suit of glossy black es- 

 corting her with clownish gallantry back and 

 forth in search of building material. An ex- 

 amination, for many seasons, of the old nests 

 reveals the information that thin scales of pine 

 bark constitute the body of the nest, to which a 

 few grass straws and fine bits of weed are add- 

 ed. 1 would be glad to know what material 

 they employ in lieu of the bark in divisions of 

 the country where the inne does not grow. If 

 the male manifests his industry in constructing 

 the nest, I am not sure that he does not ex- 

 hibit more daring in the defence of the young ; 

 though both bii'ds display admirable courage 

 when attacking a foe. Nor do they wait until 

 thej^ have hatched before giving proof of their 

 prowess, but are willing at any season to wage 

 war upon a recognized enemy. I witnessed one, 

 yesterday afternoon drive a Sparrow Hawk 

 {Falco sparverius) before him at a furious 

 rate. 



ENTOMOLOGY. 



J. A. WRIGHT. 

 265 No. Beacon St., Brighton, Mass. 



ASSOCIATE EDITOR. 

 Address all communications for this department as above. 



A Curious Home. 



BY L. E. HOOD. 



Although I have never made the study of the 

 habits of ants a specialty, yet I never tire of ob- 

 serving them and am ever eager to read accounts 

 of their remarkable instinctive habits at home 

 and abroad. 



The following was a personal observation 

 while collecting coleoptera in Western Con- 

 necticut about ten years ago, and wliile ther( 

 may not be any special scientific value in re- 

 cording it, I think it will at least be of interest 

 to the lover of nature. 



I was collecting not far from Stamford, when 

 I was enticed out of my path, by seeing a fine 

 old oak not far away. Using my hatchet 1 be- 

 gan to cut oft' the bark after beetles, when to 

 mj' surprise, a blow near the base of the trunk 

 broke through, and I saw that the tree was liol- 

 low and fairly alive inside with ants. Trying 

 with my hatchet, I found the ants had closed 

 up a former entrance into the tree trunk, by a 

 liberal use of nuid and small pieces of wood, in 

 so ingenious a way, no one would ever suspect 

 that a colony of ants had formed a habitation 

 within. 



I had so shattered their masonry that I lost 

 some interesting points, but I saw enough to 

 impress me greatly with the sagacity they had 

 shown. 



There were two entrances to their home ; one 

 through a small crevice left at one side of the 

 ancient entrance, and the second a foot below, 

 at the ground. 



This hollow tree had been the home of a fair- 

 ly large animal at some remote period, as shown 

 by the remains of a skeleton, now forming part 

 of the foundation for the nest. The skull itself 

 being partly uncovered by the blow that dis- 

 covered the nest to me, lay at the bottom of the 

 hollow and was very white and clean. As it 

 lay in the nest they used it as a means of egress 

 from some chamber to the main gallery that 

 led from the outside entrance, into the more 

 remote interior, coming out of the chamber 

 through the eye of the skull. 



