HO 



THE NIDIOLOGIST 



The best method is by injecting a solution of 

 caustic potash into the egg, " strong for large 

 eggs, weak, always, for small ones" (I (juote 

 this from an article by Rev. P. B. Peabody in 

 the April Oi>hr^ist. By this means 1 have 

 cleaned eggs that I considered hopeless with 

 wonderfully small holes. However there are 

 times when no caustic soda is at hand and the 

 eggs are too much incubated to wait. In such 

 cases, when the birds are chipping the shell, set 

 aside your egg drill, as it will only cave in the 

 decomposed sides of a Warbler's egg. Take a 

 needle or pin (preferably the former as it 

 is sharper) and prick a hole around the chi])])ed 

 part sufficiently large to admit the head of the 

 young bird. Then chloroform him, if you can, 

 and take him out in ])ieces. 



This sounds e.xceedingly cold-blooded, but it 

 is far better than letting him die for no purpose, 

 and does not hurt him any more. No one 

 would notice anything ugly about such eggs if 

 placed hole down, though of course they could 

 not be exchanged at full price, but — now 

 please do not think I am preaching — isn't an 

 egg a scientific s]jecimen, no matter how big 

 the hole is ? 



In conclusion, don't put a rare egg on an ant- 

 hill to have the insects eat the embryo, for re- 

 member that besides dogs, skunks, and rats, 

 "there are others" who will not sto]) at the 

 embryo. J. H. Bowles. 



Ponkapog, Mass. 



The Nest and Eggs of the Yellow 

 Palm Warbler. 



^\ ^HE Yellow Palm Warbler is (piite com- 

 I mon in the vicinity of Bangor, Me., dur- 

 ing the migrations. They usually arrive 

 from the South in the latter part of April, and, 

 after tarrying here for a few days, they go 

 farther north to nest and raise their young. 



About seven miles north of Bangor there is a 

 large bog, whose principal vegetation is sp/ia}^- 

 num moss and a few stunted junijjer trees. This 

 bog is about six miles long and about three 

 quarters of a mile wide, and in summer the 

 temperature and other surroundings are very 

 much the same as those of the territ<jry farther 

 north. The bog is very seldom visited, and, as 

 it has many of the characteristics of a bog in 

 Labrador, it is not strange that many of the birds 

 which usually breed farther north should here 

 remain to nest. 



On the ist of June, 1892, Mr. Charles Whit- 

 man, a fellow-collector, visited this bog, and on 

 his return he informed me that he had found a 

 nest and four newly-hatched young of the Yel- 

 low Palm Warbler. He proposed that we should 



visit the bog on the coming Saturday, and see if 

 we could not find another nest with eggs. Satur- 

 day found us at the bog, and, after viewing the 

 nest previously found by my friend, we set out 

 to find another nest if ])ossible. After going a 

 short distance we flushed a small bird from 

 under our feet, and I was soon gazing on 

 a nest with five eggs of the Yellow Palm 

 Warbler. 



The parent birds were much distressed, and 

 flew about within a few feet of us uttering angry 

 chirps. Having packed the nest and eggs we 

 began to search for more. In the course of the 

 day my friend found a nest containing four eggs 

 in a very advanced stage of incubation, and I 

 found a nest with five young. All the nests 

 found were situated at the foot of small juniper 

 trees, and were well concealed in the sphai:;nii)ii 

 moss. 



A nest now before me is composed of fine 

 grasses and dry sphagnum moss. It is lined 

 with horsehair and a few feathers. This nest 

 was situated at least a mile from the nearest 

 road, and the parents must have had to go at 

 least that distance in order to procure the horse- 

 hair. This nest contained five eggs, of a buffy 

 white color, spotted with brown and lilac. The 

 spots are thicker toward the larger end, and 

 tend to form an irregular wreath. The eggs 

 exiiibit the following dimensions, namely, 

 63X.50, .64X 50, .65X.48, .62X.48, and .65X.49 

 inches. Ora W. Knight. 



Bangor, Me. 



The Yellow Palm Warbler in 

 Somerset County, Me. 



ON the 7th of June, 1894, while out look- 

 ing for nests, I flushed a small Warbler 

 which I saw to be the Yellow Palm War- 

 bler, and searching I soon found its nest, which 

 contained one egg. 



Leaving the nest and egg, I waited until June 

 13, at which time I collected the set of five 

 fresh eggs and the nest, and shot the bird for 

 positive identification. 



The first time there the bird was quite tame 

 and did not go far from the nest while I was 

 around, but on the second occasion, when I col- 

 lected the set, she seemed a little more shy, and 

 would not allow me to come so near her, but at 

 no time did she leave me long alone. 



The nest was situated in a low spruce bush 

 and almost touched the ground, being only two 

 or three inches from it, and was surrounded by 

 grass and ferns. 



It was composed of fine grasses, fine grass 

 roots, and weed stalks, lined with a quantity of 

 feathers which I think came from the breast of 



