-nTHE # OOLOGISTj 



VOL. VI [I. 



ALBION, N. Y., AUG., 1891. 



No. 8 



The Story of a Flood. 

 By Fulica americana. 



June 12, 1891, was almost as beauti- 

 ful as any member of the aviau or any 

 other order could wish for. I was sit- 

 ting on my nest of rushes over water 

 near the edged of one of the numerous 

 sloughs of Northeastern Buena Vista 

 Co., Iowa. My eggs were well advanc- 

 ed in incubation and I was expecting to 

 soon have a dozen little Coots to pro- 

 Vide for. 



All around was peaceful. No sense 

 of impending calamity depi-essed our 

 spirits. In the different slough around 

 me the Black Terns were gathering in- 

 sects or incubating their eggs, which 

 were laid on bogs, small piles of rushes 

 or even on nests deserted by some of 

 my own species or Poclilymbus podiceps . 



Many nests of the Yellow-headed 

 Blackbird, containing eggs and young, 

 Were situated in the sound green rushes 

 among which my nest was placed. 

 Near the shore w ere those of the Red- 

 Winged Blackbird nearly, all containing 

 young. Numerous nests of the Long- 

 billed Marsh Wren, some of them con- 

 taining newly laid eggs were there also. 



The nest of the Pied-billed Grebe 

 Which looked like the bottom of. an 

 Overturned wash basin, was floating 

 near mine. It contained half-a-dozen 

 eggs, nicely covered with the material 

 of which the nest was composed, viz.: 

 mud and decaying vegetation. A 

 little way out from this an Am. Bittern 

 Was setting on her nest of rushes, guard- 

 ing her precious, drab-colored eggs. 



The Wilson's Phalaropes were incu- 

 bating their eggs on the low ground 

 near the water's edge. All feathered 

 creatures were intent on the propaga- 

 tion of the species. As for the human 

 race, they were all busily engaged in 



cultivating corn so as to have it ready 

 for the Blackbirds to feast on just be- 

 fore going south in the autumn. 



A long toward evening it became 

 somewhat dark in the west. A small 

 shower in the southeast seemed to be 

 going all around us. This came nearer 

 and it began to sprinkle. The farmers 

 sought the shelters of their houses and 

 the birds cuddled more closely over 

 their eggs and young. We were getting 

 a fresh water bath for nothing and did 

 not trouble ourselves about it. 



About 7 o'clock, somewhat to our sur- 

 prise, it began to rain harder. Then 

 still harder and harder and harder! 

 Oh, my, how it rained! It poured! It 

 fell with all the fury of a demon bent 

 on destruction. Soon the water in the 

 pond began to creep, creep, upward, 

 while my nest seemed to be gradually 

 sinking. Then as water began to run 

 into the sloughs from the adjacent hill- 

 sides it rose faster and my eggs were 

 submerged. I left the nest and the 

 wind and waves took my eggs off of it 

 and scattered them in every direction. 

 My nest, following the waves was car- 

 ried out and deposited among other 

 drifting material on the shores. Some 

 of the eggs had followed the nest and 

 were floating upon the water near it. 



Sick with dispair I looked around to 

 see what damage had been clone my 

 neighbors during the two hours rain 

 that was the heaviest known in the his- 

 tory of the county. 



It had stopped now, and the stars 

 were shining pitifully down upon us, 

 while the moon breaking through the 

 rapidly receding clouds gave us a 

 glimpse of her friendly face. 



The Pied-billed Grebe's nest was still 

 floating on the water and the covering 

 had not alloAved the eggs to be washed. 

 It was some feet from its accustomed 

 place however, lodged in a bunch of 



