THE OOLOGIST 



75 



tree growing beside a small run, in the 

 center of a pasture field, a new en- 

 trance hole was seen, near the end of 

 a slanting dead limb about twenty- 

 five feet above the run. A slight rap 

 on the tree caused a Hairy Woodpeck- 

 er to fly out. As I climbed the tree 

 she flew nearby chirping, and while I 

 was at the nest she lit above me and 

 pounded on a dead limb. I cut an 

 opening below the entrance, and found 

 three fresh eggs partly buried in 

 chips. 



In April 1907, a Woodpecker was 

 heard digging a cavity forty-five feet 

 up in the partly dead limb of a syca- 

 more tree growing on the bank of a 

 creek, along which grew several other 

 sycamores, opposite the base of a 

 steep wood hillside, and only about 

 one hundred and fifty feet from a pub- 

 lic road. May 2, as I was climbing to 

 the nest the female flew out of the 

 tree and lit nearby chirping and 

 pounding. The nest was very difficult 

 being about nine feet out from the 

 main trunk. After some very tedious 

 work an opening was made below the 

 entrance, and four slightly incubated 

 egsg were found. 



May 13th while in an apple orchard 

 five miles from town a nest was found 

 nine feet up in the dead upright limb 

 of a partly dead apple tree growing 

 beside a small run, and about three 

 hundred feet from a farm house. The 

 female sat very close and would not 

 leave the eggs until an opening had 

 been cut and she had been punched 

 with a stick. The nest contained three 

 heavily incubated eggs which were 

 partly buried in chips. 



April 17, 1908, a nest was shown to 

 me by a farmer two and one half 

 miles north of town. It was eight feet 

 up in the partly dead trunk of a good 

 sized apple tree at the edge of an 

 orchard and near a small run. An 



opening large enough to admit my 

 hand was made and the female lifted 

 from four slightly incubated eggs, 

 which were resting on chips. 



April 18, another nest was found 

 six feet up in the dead stump of a 

 large apple tree limb, near a crotch. 

 It was at the lower edge of a small 

 apple orchard, on a high hillside. I 

 made an opening and lifted the female 

 from three fresh eggs. I left it for 

 two days and when I returned it con- 

 tained four eggs. 



May 7th, a nest containing young 

 was found about twelve feet up in a 

 dead beech tree, in a woods on a hill- 

 side. 



April 11, 1910 a bird was flushed 

 from a new cavity eighteen feet above 

 the ground in a live upright limb of 

 an apple tree, which contained five 

 eggs. While it was being examined 

 the bird flew nearby chirping. 



Since 1903 and 1904 these birds have 

 increased greatly in numbers and are 

 commonly seen now, while previous to 

 1904 very few were noticed. 



While the nests are being examined, 

 the birds generally fly to a point near- 

 bj^ chirping and pounding on dead 

 limbs. After incubation has set in, 

 they are very close setters, and can 

 generally be taken from the nests with 

 the hand. 



About the only way to tell whether 

 a nest is used is to examine the 

 ground below for new chips. 



The birds are very quiet until after 

 the eggs are hatched; then they are 

 very noisy and often seen. 



Sam Dickey. 



Woodpeckers of Alberta. 



Dryobates villosus leuconelas, Nor- 

 thern Hairy Woodpecker. 



The Hairy Woodpecker remains 

 with us the entire year; at least they 

 are during all the months of the year. 



