rHK OOLO(iIS']' 



45 



fall of a foot or more of suow and all 

 nests were immediately deserted, the 

 birds congregation in small Hocks by 

 the roadside feeding and were often 

 seen in small Hocks subsequently. Nor 

 did I, during the remainder of the 

 season note any attempt to renew ef- 

 forts at niditication. 



The nests are usually sunken in the 

 ground, their rim flush with the sur- 

 face and nest and eggs off,-r so little 

 contrast that they ard by no means 

 readily discovered. Moreover the bird 

 in my experience, is bat seldom flushed 

 from the nest, usually skulking, while 

 the intruder is yet somj distance from 

 it. The nests are seldom as substantial- 

 ly built as those of the Song Sparrow 

 or Goldfinch. 



S<-t 2 4, Phelps, Ontario Co , N. Y , 

 March 19, 1891, eggs four, incubatioa 

 just begun, nest depth outside 2i inches 

 inside 1| inches, diameter outside 3| 

 inches, inside 2J inc'.ies; dry grass and 

 rootlets, outer lining plantain leaves, 

 inner lining wheat straw, situated flush 

 with brim in hole apparently excavated 

 by birds, in open clover meadow a 

 short distance from barn on slope fac- 

 ing east.' 



On going to this field in search of 

 nests as 1 climbed the fence two birds 

 flew up. I marked both spats, search- 

 ed the first without success and the 

 second with above results. 



Set 3 3, Phelps, N. Y., March 27, 1894, 

 eggs three, incubation advanced, nest 

 depth outside 2 inches, inside ^i inches, 

 diameter outside 3^ inches, inside 2i 

 inches; composed of dry grass lined 

 with wheat-chaff. About two inches 

 of snow when found and bird flushed 

 quite near me from depression in 

 ground in wheat stubble field. 



Set 4-3, Phelps, N. Y., April 3, 1891. 

 eggs three, incubation advanced, nest 

 depth outside 3f inches, inside 2i inch- 

 es; composed of grasses, fine roots and 

 lined with same and wheat chaff. Ex- 

 cavation by birds in meadow. 



Set 5 4, Phelps. M. Y., May 19, 1897, 

 eggs four, iucubatiou advanced, nest 

 depth 3\.2 inches, diameter 4x3 inches; 

 composed of liae grasses, lined with 

 sail), depression of ground in clover 

 pasture. A few sets of five eggs have 

 been reporte*!. I have never been so 

 fortunate as to observe such. The gen- 

 eral number for first sets is probably 

 four but sets of three are frequent. 



The above is the result of eight years 

 of as c.ireful observation as other duties 

 would allow. In view of the fact that 

 I have failed practically in the first ob- 

 ject of this study, may we not consider 

 that there is room for investigation as 

 to the respective status of Oclocoris al- 

 pestris and OctocorLs alpestris pralicola 

 in Western New York? 



Nests of the Wood Pewee. 



Editor Oologibl: 



1 noticed in last Oologist Mr. VV. S. 

 Catlin, speaking of Wood Pewee's nests 

 in his instructive article, "Exceptions," 

 sajs, "Out of a personal examination 

 of over a hundred nests only one con. 

 tained any lichens." Every nest that I 

 have examined in this state, was as 

 thickly adorned with lichen on the ex- 

 terior as those of the far-famed Blue- 

 gray Gnat-catcher. 



And furthermore under the head of 

 "Exceptions," I might add that they 

 were all neat and compact, and in 

 beauty, nearly equal to the Gnatcatch- 

 ers, instead of being "far inferior in de- 

 sign to the poorest nests of the Blue- 

 gray Gnatcatcher, and Ruby-throated 

 Hummingbird," * * >r * Qor do 

 they "suggest a one story, flimsy pov- 

 erty stricken home," as Mr. Davie says. 

 Jacob Bastian, Jr., 

 Statesville, N. C. 



I SOLD my Eagle through the adv. Adver- 

 tlsiug in the Oologist pays. F. W. COLLINS, 

 Garden City. Kans. 



