THE 00L0GI3T 



153 



Not At All Common. 



At Lynnfield, Mass., on April 30, 

 1910, I found two nests of the Blue- 

 bird ( Sialia Sialis), one which con- 

 tained a set of five pure white eggs. 

 Although it is a well known fact that 

 the Blue bird sometimes lays white 

 eggs, I think it is rather uncommon 

 occurrence at least in this locality. 



The nest was situated in the top 

 of a slender dead stub of a tree, 

 about five feet from the ground. The 

 nest cavity was about five inches 

 deep and was lined with grass and a 

 few feathers. 



The female bird flushed from the 

 nest and was almost immediately join- 

 ed by the male, both birds being very 

 tame. 



The other nest, which was in the 

 same strip of woods, was a typical 

 nest with blue eggs. 



Horace O. Green. 



Fish Crows at Washington, D. C. 



While working for the Biological 

 Survey at Washington, D. C, I often 

 noticed Fish Crows flying around the 

 Mall, and became interested enough 

 to watch them at spare time. 



Early Sunday morning. May 8, 1910, 

 I noticed a Crow with a large stick 

 in its mouth come flying from the 

 Southwest and go into the top of a 

 large European Linden tree, which 

 grew in an open space only about one 

 hundred feet from the Smithsonian 

 building. U])on looking carefully into 

 the tree I could see a partly built 

 black looking nest. 



Several times after this I noticed 

 the Crow go to the nest and on May 

 24, 1 examined it and found four eggs. 

 After that the Crows were seen going 

 to the tree nearly every day. 



A short time after this I discovered 

 another nest high u\) on a small 

 branch, in a large American Beech 



tree which grew in front of the old 

 Xational Museum. This pair I often 

 watched and saw them carry food 

 (garbage, etc., picked up along the 

 drive ways) to the nest, so no doubt 

 it contained young. 



Several other pairs were seen in 

 different parts of the Mall, but no 

 other nests were seen. Along the Po- 

 tomac river in the willow thickets a 

 short distance Southwest of Washing, 

 ton, quite a number of Crows were 

 seen, but on account of the density 

 of the thicket growth, and swampy 

 ground, no nests were found. 



S. S. Dickey, 

 Waynesburg, Pa. 



Lives of the Birds. 



Eagles have survived a century. 

 Swans have been known to live 100 

 years. Parrots sometimes hold on to 

 life until they are 80 years old. Pheas- 

 ants and domestic poultry rarely pass 

 beyond the age of 15 years. Instances 

 have been on record of the raven 

 having exceeded the age of 100 years. 

 Canaries, those wee cage birds, whose 

 tuneful notes are familiar to every 

 one, frequently live 16 years. 



R. E. Coles, South American Natur- 

 alist, tells about the little pets. A 

 noteworthy instance of the longevity 

 of small birds in captivity is given by 

 R. E. Coles of Ashley Arnewood, New 

 Milton, S. A., who, writing in the 

 Field, says: 



In September, 189.3, I had given to 

 me a small South American gray 

 finch, generally called Patitiva, the 

 scientific name of which is Spermo- 

 phila plumbea. I have no means of 

 ascertaining the age of the bird at 

 the time it came into my possession, 

 but it was apparently an adult, being 

 in good plumage and song. 



It remained so until it died on April 

 14th, last, at the age of 17 and one- 



