24 



ORNITHOLOGIST 



[Vol. 9-No. 2 



The Quarterly Journal or the Boston Zoological 

 Society. Vol. III., No. 1, January, 1884. Published for 

 the Society, Boston, Mass. 



This is a magazine devoted to the Study of American 

 Zoology, especially the Vertebrata and Insecta. The pres- 

 ent number contains a continuation of Ornithological Notes 

 from Minnesota, as well as several General Notes on the 

 occurrence of certain Woodpeckers, rarely found, in Massa- 

 chusetts. We hope the Society may obtain an adequate 

 support for their Journal. 



The Acadian Scientist. Vol. I., No. 12, December, 

 1883. Published by A. J. Pineo, Wolfville, N. S. 



This publication is devoted to the interests of The Aca- 

 dian Science Club, which aims to awaken and foster a more 

 general interest in Scientific Knowledge. 



Random Notes on Natural History. Vol. I., No. 1, 

 January, 1SS4. Published by Southwick & Jencks, Provi- 

 dence, R. I. 



This is a pamphlet devoted to the Distribution of Useful 

 Knowledge concerning the various Departments of Zoology, 

 Mineralogy and Botany. 



CORRESPONDENCE. 



Correspondents making inquiries are requested to be brief 

 and to the point. 



We hope for the future to mail our monthly edition on 

 the first of every month. Communications should be sent in 

 as early as possible. Nothing received after the 20th, can be 

 noticed in the number for the following month. 



Correction. In the January number in the article 

 on " Mississippi Valley Migration," page 10, the Tree Spar- 

 row was incorrectly reported to Mr. Cooke as nesting at 

 station 21, in 1882. The note in the last sentence referB to 

 the Lark Finch, which frequently nests in trees and has the 

 local name " Tree Sparrow.'' — D. E. L. 



The article referred to by our correspondent appeared 

 only m the specimen number. 



W. W. W., (Shelter Island, JV. !'.,) sends a few extracts 

 from his note book of the past season : 



Jan. 20. Saw a Belted Kingfisher and a Carolina Dove. 

 Is it not unusual to see the latter here in mid- Winter ? 



March 1. Saw a Fish Hawk crossing Gardiner's Bay, 

 twenty days ahead of their usual time of arriving. 



May 17. Shot a Red-bellied Nuthatch, the first one seen 

 in Spring during six years collecting. 



May 23. A nest containing three young Crow Blackbirds, 

 all of which were albinos, was found by a boy, who saw the 

 old bird feeding the young, the old bird being in normal 

 plumage. One of the albinos is mounted in my collection. 

 The color is a very pale drab, or cream-color. 



July 29. Saw six Black Terns, off Ram Island Shoals, 

 first ones observed alive by me. Shot two in the same lo- 

 cality a few days later. 



Sept. IT. Shot two Forster's Terns at Ram Island Shoals. 

 How far north of this do they stray ? 



Sept, 18. A Sooty Tern was caught by a fisherman, off 

 Montauk Point. He informed me that it alighted on the 

 deck, near a tub of fish, and was easily captured. I consider 

 it quite a prize. 



Bird Nomenclature. Rev. Gregory Smart, Lytha: i, 

 England, asks " whether the English names in America 

 signify the English bird of the same name." It is unfortu- 

 nate that such is very apt not to be the case. Thus the well 

 known name of Robin is given here to a Thrush which is a 

 migrant, and has only a reddish brown breast and semi-so- 

 cial habits to remind one of its English namesake. What- 

 ever points of identity there may be between the Bird Life 



of Europe and America, is not proved by their popular 

 names, which are frequently the result of a chance or fan- 

 cied resemblance. 



Mr. Smart asks for the address of any naturalist who 

 publishes a price list (with Latin names) of the Birds' Eggs 

 of America. 



The English Sky-lark. W. J. Sherratt, Philadelphia, 

 writes that these birds were seen last summer in a wood 

 just below Winslow, New Jersey, on the Camden and At- 

 lantic R. R., 22 miles from Camden. "The woods consist 

 mostly of a growth of Scrub Oak, with Lilac and Dogberry 

 bushes, and a variety of wild flowers, etc., that grow in 

 such localities. The ground is flat and somewhat marshy. 

 The birds were seen around there for some time by several 

 persons who reside in the neighborhood." 



Cardinal Redbird in Confinement. , Replying to an 

 inquiry which appeared in May last, (VIII, 38) as to the 

 possibility of keeping certain birds in confinement, Frank 

 Wentworth, Chicago, III., writes " I have a Cardinal Red- 

 bird which was caught last April in the southern part of 

 Louisiana. He is as healthy and contented as he possibly 

 can be. His principal food consists of bird-seed and rice. 

 He also likes any green food and fruits, especially a Cali- 

 fornia grape. In the summer time, when flies are numer- 

 ous, he catches them too, and seems to relish them hugely. 

 His song consists of three long drawn whistles followed by 

 three short ones, repeated thrice." 



Whooping Crane. C. P. Blackly, Manhattan, Kansas, 

 writes, "About the middle of November, there was captured 

 here, and is now in my possession, a Whooping Crane. Had 

 been wounded in one wing. Is a fine bird and bears the 

 weather well, mercury — 23°. Is hearty and quite tame al- 

 ready. Jan. 16, Blue-birds yesterday. Mercury this a. m. 

 — 3°" 



Pewees' Eggs. (Specimen January number p. 12) L. 

 Wheelock, Philadelphia, Pa., suggests that the color of the 

 eggs collected by Mr. Evermann may have been caused by a 

 disease of the bird. 



Blue Jay, (C. cristata,) J. E. Dickinson, Rockford, 

 III., says he has on two occasions listened to the song of 

 this bird, which consisted of four or five syllables repeated 

 for nearly a minute and a half. The bird sat with ruffled 

 feathers and bowed head, its notes appearing to be indica- 

 tive of sorrow. 



C. C. Richards, Norwich, Conn. We hope to receive 

 communications from you again. The one sent scarcely 

 seems sufficiently clear or noteworthy for insertion. 



Sparrow Building in an Oriole's Nest. E. M. Has- 

 brouck, Syracuse, N. T., gives a description of a find he 

 made a few years since and asks if any one eLe has met 

 with a similar occurrence. He also refers to "A Nonde- 

 script," but as l,e says the nest and eggs " have disappeared 

 from all collections " we fear it is too late to find out 

 whether the bird was "a species hitherto unobserved" or 

 not. 



Winter Bird Notes. We have to ask our correspond- 

 ent, (A ves, Waupaca, Wis..) from whom we have received 

 some Notes, to be good enough to leave his communica- 

 tions in a condition in which we can send them to the 

 printer. To re-write articles written in pencil, and not too 

 legible, is more than we can undertake. 



D. E. L. and A. H. Wood. Shall be pleased to insert your 

 communications whenever "ble to do so. 



Cleaning White Feathers. In one of the early num- 

 bers of " Science " appeared the following, which I think 

 would be especially useful in cleaning white feathers: 

 " When obliged to wash birds, collectors will find it an ad- 

 vantage to use salt and water, instead of plain water. The 

 salt prevents the solution of the blood-globules and conse- 

 quent diffusion of the red uaema-globin."— C. W. 



