The Season 



229 



May 20. Completed nest of Rose-breasted 



Grosbeak. 

 May 31. Nest of Brown Thrasher on 



ground, 4 eggs. Flock of 20 to 



25 Lesser Yellow-legs and one 



Least Sandpiper. 

 June 2. Nest of Black-billed Cuckoo; 



4 eggs. 

 June 3. Nest of Migrant Shrike; young 



three-fourths grown. 

 June 7. A male Wilson's Phalarope. 

 June 12. Cuckoo's eggs found on 2d; just 



hatched; all came out about 



same time. 



The almost complete absence of Horned 

 Larks in this locality noted in recent years 

 still continues. During an automobile ride 

 of 160 miles on April 29 and 30, through 

 ideal Horned Lark Country, the writer 

 saw only a single pair — 50 miles west of 

 Minneapolis — when in former times they 

 would have been seen all along the route. 

 Savannah and Grasshopper Sparrows and 

 Clay-colored Sparrows are also becoming 

 less numerous. No Dickcissels have been 

 seen in this vicinity for several years; they 

 were formerly abundant in suitable locali- 

 ties. The scarcity of Loons this spring 

 has been a matter of comment. 



The Pileated Woodpecker is being re- 

 ported with increasing frequency from 

 heavily timbered areas hereabouts. It is 

 apparently slowly reestablishing itself 

 after having been nearly exterminated by 

 thoughtless gunners. 



On May 24 a flock of a dozen Cedar 

 Waxwings was seen eating the central por- 

 tions of the flowers of a large apple tree, 

 all the blossoms of which had previously 

 been denuded of their petals by these 

 same birds. They had confined their depre- 

 dations to a single tree which in conse- 

 quence had a bare, blighted appearance 

 among its full-flowered neighbors. I have 

 at times seen the Waxwings tearing off the 

 petals of fruit blossoms but never before 

 have seen them make such a complete 

 wreck of a single tree. 



On June 5, while out with the Bird Class, 

 we discovered a Mourning Dove sitting on 

 a this-year's Robin's nest in a small shade 

 tree beside the entrance driveway to a 

 country residence. Investigation revealed 

 two recentl)' hatched young Doves in the 



bottom of the deep, apparently previously 

 unoccupied Robin's nest! It must have 

 been difficult for the parents to feed their 

 young in the manner peculiar to their kind 

 in the bottom of this deep cup. The thought 

 occurs to one whether this pair of Doves 

 will be satisfied hereafter with the flimsy, 

 flat structure which inherited instinct has 

 inflicted upon them in the past, after hav- 

 ing experienced the advantages of such a 

 solid and secure domicile. — Thomas S. 

 Roberts, Zoological Museum, University of 

 Minnesota, Minneapolis. 



Kansas City Region. — Water-fowl, 

 mostly Pintails and Mallards, began mi- 

 grating in earnest on March 5, and by 

 the 9th, when the Missouri River was full 

 of mush ice, Ducks and Geese were passing 

 this point in some numbers. By the i8th 

 there was a lull in the flight, when the first 

 flocks of Scaup Ducks began dropping into 

 the river, busy as usual at this time of the 

 year with their mating antics. These small 

 troops were followed during the next ten 

 days by the annual north-bound proces- 

 sion, fortunately still increasing, of Green- 

 winged Teal, Redheads, Widgeon, Gad- 

 wall, Ruddy Ducks, Shovellers, and Wood 

 Ducks. Pied-billed Grebes and Coots were 

 seen on March 26, and on April 8, when 

 the Blue-wings first appeared in any num- 

 bers, another heavy flight of Ducks and 

 Geese was recorded. Wilson's Snipe, 

 Franklin's and Ring-billed Gulls, with a 

 few large Terns, were noted during the 

 next three days. At this time immense 

 hordes of Coots arrived, blackening the 

 river with rafts of tens of thousands of 

 resting birds. The abolition of spring shoot- 

 ing is evidenced in a very striking manner, 

 locally at least, by the astonishing increase 

 in the numbers of this species. Mr. William 

 Andrews, of Courtney, is keeping a careful 

 record of the movements of all water-birds 

 through here that will in time be a valuable 

 mass of data for reference. 



The first House Wren, Wood Pewee, 

 Chestnut-sided Warbler, and Herring Gull 

 were reported on April 14, and on the 17th, 

 when the House Wrens were on their 

 breeding stands in full song, passing troops 



