THE NIDIOLOGIST. 



59 



and the prairie lakelets of the northwest. 

 Various situations are selected, but always 

 with an eye to shelter and concealment. 

 More often a cavity in the under side of a 

 turned-up root, over a pool of water, is 

 chosen for a nest-site, than any other place; 

 but a cavity in the bank of a stream, among 

 the roots of a standing tree, or a hole under 

 a stump, in the side of a rotten log, or 

 under the shelter of a fallen tree, or be- 

 tween two moss-covered stones, may be 

 selected. If the shelter above and the sit- 

 uation is desirable, though the foundation 

 may not be suitable, yet the bird will go to 

 work and fill up the space with damp leaves, 

 weed stalks, and moss, till she has made 

 the structure satisfactory, when she will 

 put in a lining of fine dry grass, hair of 

 various animals, hair moss, and the skele- 

 tons of leaves. If a small cavity is found 

 in a desirable situation, the bird will not 

 impose on herself any unnecessary work, 

 but make the nest to suit her purpose with 

 a small amount of the finest materials that 

 can be collected near by, and in a day or 

 two after the nest is completed deposition 

 of the eggs begins, and incubation imme- 

 diately commences on the completion of 

 the set. The usual set of eggs of the 

 Water-Thrush is four or five, more often 

 the former than the latter. These are of a 

 clear white hue, dotted, especially towards 

 the larger end, wdth reddish-brown spots. 



The nesting period extends from the 

 middle of May to that of July; but if the 

 bird is successful in her first efforts to raise 

 a brood of young, she does not nest more 

 than once in the season, otherwise she may 

 nest again; but there is — according to the 

 season, and probably also the age of the 

 birds — some weeks of variation in their 

 first nesting time. 



The bird itself is between five and six 

 inches in length, and the plumage on the 

 upper parts is of a dark olive-brown hue; 

 the lower parts are whitish, with a yellow- 

 ish tinge, and rows of dark spots extend- 

 ing from the throat downwards. At a short 

 distance the resemblance between the dif- 



ferent species of these Wagtails is close, 

 but upon an examination of the species in- 

 habiting the regions east and west of the 

 great lakes of North America, there is 

 found to be sufficient difference to justify 

 their being classified as distinct species. 



Mr. Turner, in his "Natural History of 

 Alaska," states that he obtained several 

 specimens of the Small-billed Water-Thrush 

 at St. Michael's in the month of August, 

 and did not observe the species there at 

 any other time till after the breeding sea- 

 son. He states that the birds were quite 

 tame, and frequented the paths among the 

 tall grass, searching for worms and insects; 

 and he supposed that they bred in the in- 

 terior and visited the coast in their fall 

 migrations towards the south, and after the 

 25th of August none were to be seen. As 

 Mr. Fannin mentions only Grinnell's Water- 

 Thrush as being found in British Columbia, 

 it is hardly likely that the other species 

 would migrate through that country both 

 in spring and fall without being observed 

 b}^ him, or some of his ornithological 

 friends, in so many years as their records 

 extend over; and as there is so little differ- 

 ence between the two species, it is most 

 probable that the birds seen by Mr. Turner 

 were the notabilis and not the noveberacensis. 

 Besides, the species found in the prairie 

 region east of the Rocky mountains has 

 been found to belong to the former species 

 and not the latter. In all probability the 

 Small-billed Water-Thrush does not go west 

 of the longitude of the Mississippi valley, 

 and therefore not over the Rocky mountains. 

 In winter this bird is found in parts of Cal- 

 ifornia and down toward Central America. 



A 



SUGGESTION TO ORNITHOLO- 

 GISTS. 



Allow me to say a word to those collect- 

 ors who have not learned the ropes. There 

 are many publications issued each year by 

 the Government which are exactly suited to 

 the requirements of naturalists. These 

 pamphlets and books are generally for free 

 distribution, and may be obtained at head- 



