April, 1884.] 



AND OOLOGIST. 



47 



which I believe is their first appearance in this vicinity this 

 season; also numerous Bluebirds in their liveliest Bong; 

 also the Song Sparrow warbling its sweetest notes; also a 

 couple of Meadow Larks, and many other birds hitherto 

 noted. "The heart of winter is broken." 



Feb. 16. Rarely could there have been a more spring- 

 like day than this in the month of February. Clear and 

 calm throughout, and the thermometer reaching 70°. With- 

 out going outside of my yard heard the familiar notes or 

 song of the following early spring birds : the Robin (their 

 first appearance) the Bluebird, the Song Sparrow, the Cardi- 

 nal-bird and the Wren. Saw also the Crow and the Mead- 

 ow Lark. During almost the entire morning the Cardinal, 

 the Bluebird and Song Sparrow were all in full song. These 

 three, it is worthy of emphasis, are not only among the 

 earliest of our singing birds in spring, but also among the 

 most lasting, all continuing in song throughout the spring 

 and summer months, and even into the fall. Of the three 

 the Song Sparrow is the most constant singer, after once 

 "opening the season," rarely suspending its song on ac- 

 count of a cold spell which is sufficient temporarily to si- 

 lence the others. 



Ffb. 28. Since my last entry the weather for the most 

 part has been severely cold, with numerous light snow falls, 

 and for several days neither Robin nor Bluebird was to be 

 seen, but to-day both have again made their appearance. 

 Observed a small Hawk flying over an open field, and, in its 

 course, at the height of about fifty feet, suddenly stop and 

 poise itself with vibrating wings for full thirty seconds, 

 possibly reconnoitering the ground below for game. On re- 

 suming its flight it passed so near me overhead— alighting 

 on the topmost branch of a tree not far distant— I was en- 

 abled to fully recognize it as the Sparrow Hawk (Falco 

 sparverius.) 



Mar. 3. Counted sixty odd Crows in one straggling flock 

 heading in a southeasterly direcrion. 



Saw a flock of about fifty American Goldfinches or Yel- 

 lowbirds (Chrysomitris tr-istis), the first to meet my eye 

 since late fall, although it is common for small flocks of 

 these birds to remain with us throughout the wiuter. The 

 inexperienced observer would scarcely recognize these 

 birds in their sombre winter dress as the brilliant Yellow- 

 bird of Summer. ■ 



March 5. Saw three separate flocks of Red-winged 

 Blackbirds (Agclceus ]fhoeniceus), of about fifty each, dur- 

 ing one drive of a few miles along a valley road, mostly 

 feeding in the open fields. These flocks seemed to consist 

 wholly or largely of male birds. In many of them the wing- 

 patch was somewhat obscure, and rather inclining to yel- 

 lowish, indicating, perhaps, the young birds of the last year. 



March 9. Saw a small flock of Purple Grackles or Crow 

 Blackbirds, (Quiscalus purpureua.) A few Red-wings were 

 associated with them in the same flock. Heard the chant 

 of the Meadow Lark, the cooing of the Dove, the carol of 

 the Robin and the call of the High-hole. " The time of the 

 singing of birds has come." 



March 16. Saw a winter-wren (Troglodytes hyemalia), 

 about a brush-heap near a small stream. This may readily 

 be distinguished from other wrens by its shorter tail which 

 is always erect. It is also the smallest of the family. 



March 18. " Kill-deer, kill-deer," were the new bird 

 notes to greet my ear to-day. (JEgialites votiferus.) 



March 19. Caught sight of the Blue Jay, (Cyanocitta 

 cristata,) three or four in one company. These, although 

 no uncommon winter residents, have hitherto escaped my 

 notice. Saw a Passenger Pigeon (Bctopistes nngratoria,) 

 feeding in a corn-field singly and alone, perhaps a straggler 

 from some passing or neighboring flock. 



March 27. Rode up to within five or six yards of a Hawk 



that was perched on a low limb reaching out over the road, 

 affording me a reasonably fair view. Its back, which was 

 towards me, was a light brown mottled with grey, and in 

 size it was about midway between our two most familiar 

 representatives of the two extremes of the family of Spar- 

 row and Red-tailed Hawks. I judged this to be Cooper's 

 Hawk, alias Chicken Hawk, (Accipiter cooperi.) I only 

 make this entry for the sake of saying that my list of birds 

 does not do justice to the Hawk and Owl families, of which 

 many individuals, especially of the former, have come un- 

 der my observation since beginning this journal, and only 

 in a single instance could I place identity beyond a doubt. 

 A long-ranged gun is mostly necessary to settle the matter. 

 It is no unusual thing for the Snowbirds to come into song 

 before leaving us in the spring. Heard numbers of them 

 to-day warble out some simple but very sweet notes. 



March 30. This morning found the ground covered with 

 four inches of snow, and still filling, nor did it cease be- 

 fore the middle of the day, when it measured quite six 

 inches. It was interesting during the morning, amid the 

 thickest of the falling snow, to hear the Robins warbling 

 their sweetest lays ; the Carolina Wren also seemed to be 

 more than usually animated in his song. 



It is worthy of note that as early as the ISth of this 

 month, having made a pocket memorandum of it at the 

 time, one or two of the last named birds, (Fhryothorue lu~ 

 dovicianus), began building a nest in my stable, occupying a 

 last year's Barn Swallow's nest, attached to a rafter, as the 

 foundation of their structure, at which they worked with 

 great dilligence for several successive days, and then appar- 

 ently abandoned it. To-day I examined this new wren fab- 

 ric and found it to be a perfectly and most ingeniously 

 formed nest— the sides being raised and the whole com- 

 pletely arched over, with a small circular opening at the 

 side leading to the very bottom of the Swallow's nest, which 

 I could only reach with a six-inch pencil. The materials 

 consisted of dry grass, leaves, feathers and horse-hair. 

 Whether this proves more than what Jardine calls a mere 

 "cock nest," or possibly temporary roosting quarters, re- 

 mains to be seen. In other years I have known these birds 

 to roost, a large part of the winter, in a Barn Swallow's 

 nest which they themselves had lined with the fluff feathers 

 of chickens. 



April 4. We had to-day the first genuine spring weather 

 since the opening of the spriug months, and during the 

 morning the air was full of bird music. Within a very brief 

 time, without going beyond the bounds of my yard, readily 

 recognized the notes or song of as many as eleven differ- 

 ent species. Observed a pair of Turtle-doves building a 

 nest in an apple tree in my lot— the first nest-builders of the 

 season. 



Brief Notes. 



Woodpecker and Owl.— Some few years since a friend 

 of the writer found in the end of a hollow limb, about six 

 inches thick, a full grown Red-headed Woodpecker, at the 

 bottom of the cavity. About six inches from the bottom 

 was a small hole, in which was firmly fixed a Screech Owl 

 with its claws clinched in the head of the Woodpecker ; its 

 head was also inside the hole, but wings outside. They 

 were both quite dead when found, the limb having blown 

 down. Do Screech Owls often attack a bird as large as the 

 Red-head? I helped to preserve them in the position they 

 occupied when fonnd. I also once found a Mourning Dove 

 nesting in an old Robin's nest. It had young ones in, and 

 was about seven feet from the ground, on a horizontal limb 

 of an apple tree. Is it of common occurrence ? — R. J. 

 Tozer, Cleveland, Ohio. 



