﻿Notes from Field and Study 



211 



A Nest Within a Human Skull 



Never a year passes, but we read of cu- 

 rious places in which our little feathered 

 friends have built their nests. Of all strange 

 places, probably, no pair of birds ever 

 selected a stranger than did a pair of Cape 

 Wagtails, which built their nest within the 

 recesses of a human skull. 



Whether the large opening at the base of 

 the skull was caused by shot or shell or by 



the combined efforts of the two Wagtails, 

 remains an open question in the writer's 

 mind. But this is certain, the nest is very 

 snugly built within, and ample room is left 

 above for the sitting bird, and, furthermore, 

 almost perfect protection from wind and rain 

 is granted by the osseous dome above. 



The accompanying illustration is from the 

 original nest in the Natural History Museum, 

 in London, Eng. — Robt. B. Macmillan, 

 Buffalo, N. Y. 



[A similar site was selected by a pair of 

 House Wrens, at Sing Sing, N. Y.; as has 

 been recorded by Dr. A. K. Fisher, by 

 whom the skull containing the nest was 

 presented to the United States National 

 Museum. — Ed.] 



Black Terns Near New York City 



In the vicinity of New York City, the 

 months of August and September, just past, 



were noteworthy for a heavy migration of the 

 Black Tern. The first ones were noticed on 

 the lower Hudson river early in August, and 

 the birds were common until the end of 

 September. Several were seen during the 

 first week in October, two on the 6th being 

 the last noted by me, and I am informed 

 that a few were seen as late as the middle of 

 the month. They were also seen in numbers 

 about Staten Island, and on Newark Bay, 

 N.J. 



For several weeks the Terns were very 

 common. As many as fifteen or twenty 

 were often in sight at once. At times most 

 of the birds were flying down stream as 

 though migrating southward, but on other 

 occasions as many were seen winging their 

 way in the opposite direction. 



Dr. L. B. Bishop informs me that none 

 were observed on Long Island Sound in the 

 vicinity of New Haven, Connecticut. This 

 is rather surprising, in view of the abundance 

 of the birds near New York City, and seems 

 to indicate that the migrants did not travel 

 along the coast, but came directly from the 

 north or northwest. — W. DeW. Miller, 

 American Museum of Natural History. 



Pine Siskins in Ohio 



We have been greatly interested, this 

 autumn, in the Pine Siskins. They are 

 usually somewhat rare migrants in this sec- 

 tion, but, the present season, have been very 

 numerous. During a most unseasonable and 

 heavy snow in early October, these little 

 birds surrounded our houses and literally 

 skimmed the outer walls of all insect life. 

 From foundation to eaves they hunted in 

 every nook and corner, capturing spiders, 

 flies, cocoons, etc. As they flitted in their 

 hunt, they beautifully displayed the sulphur 

 yellow markings of wings and tails. They 

 seemed very tame, often lighting on the 

 window-sills to devour any large catch. 



Our bird books record no such habits on 

 the part of the Siskins, which we supposed 

 to be exclusively seed-eaters. Perhaps the 

 emergency of the snow turned them to un- 

 usual food channels. Have such habits been 

 noticed or reported by others ?— Mrs. Jose- 

 phine L. Parsons, Chardon, Ohio. 



