AMERICAN ORNITHOLOGY. 55 



have learned the fatal character of the lights and avoid them. It has 

 also been noticed that no birds strike on moonlight nights, at least until 

 towards morning when the moon sinks below the horizon and leaves the 

 heavens darkened. The largest flight of birds takes place in the spring 

 and fall months. The above report is valuable from the fact that it gives 

 an accurate idea of the dates of migration, and of the different species 

 which travel over this section. 



Extracts from Philadelphia "Public Ledger," Jan. 31, 1904. 



A. O. U. No. 444. (Tyrannus tyrannus.) 



RANGE. 



Whole of temperate North America, but chiefly east of the Rocky- 

 Mountains as they are only rarely and locally found on the Pacific coast; 

 their range extends north to the southern parts of British America; in 

 winter they go beyond our borders to Cuba, Central America and 

 northern South America. 



DESCRIPTION. 



Length about 8.5 inches. Upper parts slate color, blackest on the 

 crown, wings and tail; the underparts are white, and there is a semi- 

 concealed orange patch in the center of the crown; only the adult birds 

 have this latter mark, the young having the crown solid blackish. 



NEST AND EGGS. 



King birds nest in open places either on the edge of woods or in or- 

 chards; their nests are placed at moderate distances from the ground; 

 say four to fifteen feet. Nests may be found in a great many varieties 

 of trees but by far the greater percentage are in apple or pear trees. 

 Their nests are made of grasses, fibres, twigs, and especially in the 

 neighborhood of houses, string; this structure is quite large and is 

 usually lined with horse hair. 



They lay three, four, five and sometimes even six eggs in a set, four 



