The Audubon Societies 



399 



of the Michigan Audubon Society; A. C. 

 Webb, President of the Tennessee Orni- 

 thological Society; Dr. H. H. Covell, of 

 Rochester; John Lewis Childs, of Long 

 Island; Mrs. Winthrop Packard and 

 William P. Wharton, of Massachusetts; 

 Mr. and Miss Vibert, and Wilbur Smith, 

 of Connecticut; Prof. H. L. Madison, 

 President of the Rhode Island Audubon 



Society; Miss Gladys Gordon-Smith, of 

 New Jersey; B. S. Bowdish, Secretary of 

 the New Jersey Audubon Society; Miss 

 Frances A. Hurd, School Secretary of 

 the Connecticut Society; Dr. T. S. Pal- 

 mer, of Washington; Mrs. Alice Hall 

 Walter, of Rhode Island; Howard H. 

 Cleaves and Harold K. Decker, of Staten 

 Island. 



A GROUND-NESTING FLICKER 



In June, 1916, I received a letter from 

 one of the members of this Association, 

 Mr. Harry L. Ferguson, who is in business 

 in New York City, and who has a summer 

 home on Fisher's Island, off the eastern 

 end of Long Island. In this the writer 

 stated that he had found a Flicker nesting 

 on the ground, and the letter was accom- 

 panied by some photographs of the nest 

 and eggs. I at once wrote for further data 

 and asked him to keep a close watch on 

 developments. The following communi- 

 cation from Mr. Ferguson was written 

 under date of August 9, 1916: 



"I promised that I would take more 

 pictures of the Flicker's nest and sur- 

 rounding country, so that you could see 



the lay of the land, and am sending you a 

 full set. 



"The nest was situated in such an open 

 spot that I could not get e picture of the 

 old bird on the eggs. I tried once making 

 a blind of bay-branches, but the bird was 

 so frightened that I moved away, as I 

 was afraid she would desert. The nearest 

 trees are about 150 feet away, but they 

 would not have been very suitable, and I 

 have not found any except green ones 

 there. On the opposite side of the nest 

 and still farther away are some small 

 fence-posts. The only bushes near the 

 nest are short bay-bushes and these 

 afforded no cover or shade for the nest. 



"The nest was found by the family of 



GROUND-BUILT NEST OF A FLICKER, ON I I II ISLAND, NEW YORK 



Photographed by H. L Ferguson 



