80 



THE OOLOGIST. 



Wrens. If they made a fuss when we 

 entered the reeds, the noise they made 

 when we attacked their nests was inde- 

 scribable. We were however rather 

 early for eggs, and only two sets were 

 secured, Round and round among 

 those rushes we waded, waist deep in 

 mud and water, and with only wet 

 clothes on our backs; but that did 

 not dampen our enthusiasm, much as it 

 did our skin. Suddenly from in front 

 of me there arose a little apparition in 

 yellow, and with dangling legs and 

 stooped head, a Least Bittern skimmed 

 over the tops of the rushes for a few 

 yards, and dropped. It however im- 

 mediately returned, not by the over- 

 land route, but through the rushes, to 

 find out the fate of its nest and eggs. 



So sudden was the rise that I stood 

 motionless staring at the bird; but a 

 moment after I was stooping over my 

 first set of Botaurus exiles. Five dirty 

 bluish-white beauties formed the set, 

 and with my treasures I hastened back 

 to the landing where a boat manned by 

 a friend was awaiting me. As it was 

 now nearly five o'clock it was deemed 

 advisable to start home; and in a few 

 minutes our staunch craft was gaily 

 riding the billows of Lake Ontario. A 

 stiff breeze had sprung up and render- 

 ed our voyage back rather exciting but 

 we were fresh and jolly because of our 

 good fortune, and our treasures packed 

 in our respective collecting boxes. 



During our short stay a large percen- 

 tage of the birds were Marsh Wrens 

 [Cistothorus palustris) and next in 

 numbers were the Red- winged Black- 

 birds, (Agelaius phoenicens), who were 

 feeding their clamorus young who sat 

 with flapping wings on the edges of the 

 nest or on the i - eeds. Coot's (Fulica 

 americana), were tolerably common 

 but it was past breeding time and all 

 we saw of eggs were a few broken egg 

 shells. Lastly Least Bitterns (Botaurus 

 exciUs)weve seen in small numbers, and 

 Song Sparrows, (Melospiza fasciata) as 



usual haunted the grassy edges of the 

 pond. 



W. H. McNairn, 

 Toronto, Out. 



A Curious Battle. 



One sunny morning in tne early part 

 of May, 1887, I witnesssed a curious 

 battle between a Baltimore Oriole and 

 a Least Pewee. The Pewee was build- 

 ing its nest, which was partly finished, 

 when the Oriole came and tried to steal 

 the Pewee's building material to build 

 its own. The Pewee resisted and there 

 Avas a royal battle for a few minutes, in 

 which the feathers flew from the bodies 

 of both combatants. The Pewee drove 

 Sir Lord Baltimore back, only to have 

 him return to the attack, after a few 

 minutes rest. In the third attack the 

 battle raged hot and heavy for about 

 five minutes and at the termination 

 Lord Baltimore was glad to retreat, 

 leaving the Pewee the victor. 



Moral — It is not always the strong- 

 er party that wins. Pluck tells every 

 time. 



Bubo Virginianus, 

 Schuyler's Lake, N. Y. 



A Set of Krider's Hawk. 



On March 24th, 1891, I and my friend 

 L. L. Knox, started out for a days col- 

 lecting. On arriving at our favorite col- 

 lecting ground, an elm flat we saw a. 

 large Krider's Hawk silently leave the 

 nest, which was situated in a large elm 

 tree, 75 feet or more tall. My friend 

 strapped on his climbers but I took the 

 tree without them. We got within six 

 feet of the nest when my friend slipped 

 and had to give up the race. I got to 

 the nest after some hard climbing and 

 found two eggs, one slightly blotched 

 on the larger end and the Other more 

 so. We came down, highly elated with 

 our success for we were the only col- 

 lectors who had taken any Krider's 

 that year. G. W. Erwin, 



Giddings, Tex. 



