THE OOLOGIST. 



223 



sits still indefinitely on a limb or stakes 

 waiting for a job, tramp-like, till a bee 

 or bug or butterfly comes that way, 

 then seemingly with a painful effort 

 they hop off their perch and execute 

 their capias and then return as quickly 

 as possible to get another rest; and in- 

 stead of go'mg off like our enterprising 

 Chewee to hunt a job, they sit still 

 again as though they were tired, till 

 something else again "turns up." 



I intended to say a word about his 

 habitat. I think we must accept Dr. 

 Coues as authority on his habitat, which 

 makes it in the northern Atlantic states, 

 English provinces and 43 ° in Michigan 

 where I have seen it — particularly on 

 the Wisconsin river and West into east- 

 ern Kansas, and up the Missouri river 

 as far, at least as 43 ° and south of 

 course in the southern states. 



W. D. F. Lummis. 



•Des Moines, la., Oct. 26, 1891. 



Our Birds in Their Haunts- 



A Special Offer. 



I am about to issue a new edition of 

 "Our Birds in Their Haunts." The 

 points claimed for this work are: 



1. That it is a complete treatise on 

 the birds of Eastern North America at 

 •a, very low figure, $2.50 being the retail 

 price of the new edition. 



2. It makes a specialty of oology and 

 nidification. 



3. It contains much new matter not 

 found in other printed works. 



4. It is pi'epared with special regard 

 to the pleasure of the reader, that is, 

 readableness is a prime consideration. 

 The birds are grouped in relation to 

 season and locality, are studied "in 

 their haunts," the question of habitat 

 receiving particular attention. 



The second point given above, has 

 never been suffice ntly emphasized in 

 ■any notice of the work. The location, 

 •composition and structure of the nest; 



the size, form and color of the eggs are 

 all noted with the utmost interest and 

 care. To the author oology has always 

 been one of the most charming features 

 of bird-study. 



Under the third item, the points par- 

 ticularly new, are contained in the dis- 

 tribution of certain species, and espec- 

 ially the history of the water birds on 

 the great fresh waters of the interior. 

 It is safe to say, that no other book on 

 American birds, will duplicate many of 

 the facts here given; and that technical 

 ornithologists have passed this line of 

 facts by without due attention, simply 

 because the book was in popular style. 



The special offer is, that all persons 

 sending in subscriptions, or bona fide 

 applications by January 1st can have 

 the book for $1.60 including postage, 

 provided that the number of applica- 

 tions be sufficient to enable the author 

 to bring out the work on the present 

 plan. The number of names pledged 

 should not be less than 450. If the 

 number sent in is not adequate no one 

 will be holden for his application. 

 J. H. Langille, 



Kensington, Md., or Smithsonian In- 

 stitution, Washington, D. C. 



P. S. Applications should be sent at 

 once to my address. In this case time 

 is money. 



The Lark Bunting. 



The Lark Bunting arrives here the 

 first of May. Frequenting the open 

 prairies in company with the Night- 

 hawk, the Prairie Horned Lark and 

 the Mountain Plover, it rears its young 

 and then departs for winter quarters 

 the latter part of August. 



This species commences nesting the 

 last of May. The nest is placed on the 

 ground at the base of any weed or small 

 bush| but the common thistle is usually 

 selected. The nest is composed of 

 grass blades, stems and weeds lined 

 with fine rootlets and occasionally a few 



