68 



THE NIDIOLOGIST 



covered a cotton-wood stump which con- 

 tained a nest of the Flicker, one of the 

 Red-headed Woodpecker, and one of the 

 Bluebird. Fifteen feet up in the stub was 

 the nest of the Flicker, and five teet above 

 this was that of the Woodpecker and four 

 feet higher still was the nest of the Blue- 

 bird. The nest of the Red- headed Wood- 

 pecker was three feet deep and contained 

 seven fresh eggs. 



I have often found their nests in telegraph 

 poles by which ran man}' trains dailj^ yet 

 the Red-heads seemed contented with tlieir 

 strange home. 



Frequently I have noticed them catch 

 insects on the wing with great skill and in 

 my judgment they are equal to the ring- 

 bird in this art. 



The e.ugs are pure white and number 4 

 to 7. The average measurements of a set 

 of six eggs are i. cox. 68 inches. 



Girard, Kansas. W. S. Colvin. 



StDallotD-tailed Kite. 



THE SWALLOW-TAILED KITE, the 

 rarest and most beautiful of our Rap- 

 tores, nests in the tall timber border- 

 ing on our streams. I have never 

 known of a nest placed at a greater distance 

 than 50 yards from a stream; this, and the 

 habit the bird has of sailing slowly up and 

 down the course of the stream, has won it 

 the local name of "Fish Hawk." 



They usually choose the tallest tree in 

 the neighborhood for a nesting site, and 

 build at the extremity of some large limb, 

 sometimes in the very top of the tree. 

 Usually their nests are composed of small 

 sticks, from six inches to a foot long, with 

 green moss (jisnea) and sometimes a few 

 leaves; but sometimes Spanish moss is 

 used, and then the hanging ends of the 

 moss make a pretty decoration for the nest. 

 The pugnacity of this Kite is something 

 wonderful, their remarkable activity in the 

 air enabling them to make it uncomfortat)le 

 for anyone trying to disturb their nests. A 

 peculiarity of the species is that all the in- 

 dividuals in the vicinity will combine to 

 protect the nest of a single pair. 



All ray notes of previous years having 

 been destroyed two years ago, during my 

 al)sence from home, by the young hopeful 

 of a visitor, I cannot give notes of sets 

 taken previous to that time. 



However, I will relate the taking of a set, 



the details of which are clear in my memory. 

 In April, 1891, a boy came to me and re- 

 ported a Swallow-tailed Kite's nest ou a 

 small creek three miles west of the town. 

 Taking a friend along, I went out and 

 found the nest. It was in a giant pin oak 

 tree, about 70 feet up, situated on the 

 broken end of an almost upright limb, 

 about the etid of which a number of small 

 branches had grown out, encircling the 

 nest. 



The limb was about 20 feet long, and 

 formed, with the main branch, an angle of 

 about 30 degrees. 



W^e concluded at once that we could not 

 climb the tree, so we returned to town. 

 About a week later we secured a bo}- who 

 said he could climb it, and returned to the 

 nest. The boj' started up, and when about 

 half way to the nest the mother bird left the 

 nest and flew away. The boy had reached 

 the small branch the nest was on when the 

 bird returned, accompanied by three more. 

 We called to the boy and warned him. He 

 planted his feet in the crotch, and locking 

 both arms around the limb, " turned 

 under" — and none too soon. . The Kites 

 made it lively for .several seconds; often 

 their wings struck the limb near the boy's 

 face. But one of the birds having been 

 wounded by a rifle shot, they flew high 

 over our heads, uttering their uneasj' cries. 

 The nest contained three beautiful eggs, 

 perfectly fresh, one having a small hole in 

 it, made evidently by the mother bird as 

 she left the nest. The nest was composed 

 of sticks and Spanish moss. 



A week later my friend found the nest of 

 another pair of birds, containing two eggs, 

 about a mile up the same creek. Compos- 

 ition similar to the first. 



This year I was fortunate enough to get 

 two full sets and one single. About the 

 middle of May a Negro boy came in and 

 reported two nests fifteen miles from Gid- 

 dings, on Nail's Creek. These were taken 

 May 19. The first nest was in an elm, 80 

 feet up, composed of sticks and green moss; 

 contained three eggs, slightly incubated, 

 beautifully marked. Eggs measure 1.93 x 

 1.56, 1. 91 X r.48, 1.84 X 1. 51. 



No. 2, also in an elm, 65 feet up, com- 

 posed of green moss and sticks. The birds 

 had been slightly pugnacious in the first 

 case, and now, the two nests being close 

 together, they fought like demons. I had 

 no gun with me, and the darkey was so 



