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THE OOLOOIST 



speckled with chestnut, one of them 

 had a flesh . colored ground. There 

 was a Cow bird's egg in the nest. 

 The nest was the most beautiful of any 

 that I have ever found of this species, it 

 "was covered nicely with lichens out- 

 wardly and lined with fine grass and 

 hair. This bird is by no means rare in 

 this county, yet its nest is not found 

 very often. 



June, 2 — I found a nest of the Blue- 

 winged Warbler's (Helmintkophila pin- 

 ms,) which contained three of its own 

 eggs, and two of the Cowbird's, the 

 nest was placed on the ground at the 

 foot of a clump of may apples. It was 

 composed of leaves outwardly lined 

 with I air. This Cowbird (Mololhrus 

 ater) is a feathered culprit that ought 

 to be exterminated from the feathered 

 tribe. It is seldom that I find a small 

 bird's nest without one or more of the 

 Cowbird's eggs in it. I have found its 

 eggs as early as April 26 and as late as 

 July 21. If the female lays off and on 

 daring all this time no wonder they in- 

 crease rapidly, and I see no reason to 

 prove that they do not. I would like 

 to hear from others on this point. 



June, 14 — I collected a set of four 

 light-blue eggs of the Wood Thrush 

 {Turdus mustelinus). The nest was 

 placed in a white oak about 20 ft. from 

 the ground near a running stream and 

 composed of leaves mixed with mud 

 and lined with fibrous roots. This bird 

 is quite plentiful in certain localities in 

 this county. 



June. 16— I. secured a set of three 

 eggs of the Prairie Horned Lark, (Oto- 

 corvs alpestris leucolcema) from a nest 

 placed by a hill of corn in a cornfield 

 and composed of grass lined with hair 

 and bits of wool. This bird is one of 

 the most interesting that has come un- 

 der my observations. It is very plen- 

 tiful, staying with us all the year. It 

 nests from March to August. I found 

 a nest last year the first of April, which 

 contained three half-fledged birds, the 



next day there came quite a snow, the 

 next morning I went to see how the 

 nestlings were and behold! there was 

 only a lifeless body, and the nest desert- 

 ed. I have observed a habit that this 

 bird has that I have not seen described, 

 it is that of mounting in the air by re- 

 peated short flights, and poising be- 

 tween each and singing its little lays, 

 and w r heh it descends it extends its 

 wings and drops like an arrow. Often 

 of a spring morning have I watched 

 this bird as it ascends and descends the 

 sky, as if overflowing with joy. It on- 

 ly does this in the early spring I think. 



Aug., 25—1 collected a set of four 

 eggs of the Yellow-billed Cuckoo's 

 (Coccyzus americanus), from a nest 

 placed on a horizontal limb of a white 

 oak, about 10 It. from the ground and 

 composed of twigs very loosely put to- 

 gether, even so I could see the eggs 

 through the nest. In the October 

 "Oologist" Mr. Wake say's in his inte- 

 resting article ''Ould Lang Syne" "that 

 he found a Yellow-billed Cuckoo's nest 

 Aug. 17, 1893 and is that not very late?" 

 It is not for this locality, for most of 

 the nests that I have found have been 

 in August although they nest in June 

 and July. You will often find young 

 half-Hedged birds in the same nest 

 with fresh eggs, in fact I have not 

 found a nest that contained all fresh 

 eggs. 



Sept., 16 — I secured a set of four 

 light blue eggs of the American Gold- 

 finch (Spinus trisiis), from a nest placed 

 in a thistle and composed of gra c s, tine 

 rootlets, interwoven with cobwebs, 

 and was lined with wool, thistle down 

 etc. This is the latest bird to ne st 

 we have in this county. 



I am yours in the study of birds. 

 David L. Savage, 



Salem, Iowa. 



