DEIiAWABE VALLEY ORNITHOLOGICAL CLUB. 25 



above the ground. One particular spring in the forepart of the 

 seventies I remember standing on an elevated spot near our 

 barn whence an extensive view could be had for miles in all 

 directions. Flock after flock followed each other across the 

 sky, each pursuing the same northeasterly course. Not only 

 above my head, but on all sides as far as the eye could reach, I 

 could see nothing but pigeons! The sky was full of them, a 

 perfect maze of beating wings, cut here and there by rifts of 

 blue. It reminded me of an oncoming storm, of black, angry 

 clouds, hurtling up at tremendous velocity and with that rush- 

 ing sweep of sound, ominous of what is to come. For the 

 combined beat of wings overhead was plainly audible and 

 sounded like the hissing of some immense sky-rocket. I do 

 not remember how long it took for this flight to pass or settle, 

 but I do know that after this the birds were plentiful every- 

 where. 



Not all the Pigeons remained for the summer, but those that 

 did, fed on the beech-nuts while they lasted, and then retired 

 to the wet alder marshes to spend the balance of their stay. 

 On several occasions they nested in our neighborhood in great 

 numbers, but at that time I was too small to observe them my- 

 self. My father told me that the last time they homed here, 

 he had counted forty-two nests in one beech tree, and old 

 hunters claimed that the nesting-place (possibly the roost) 

 occupied a space seven miles long by two miles wide. All I 

 personally remember is, that those Pigeons, which stayed with 

 us, remained more or less constantly in the alder marshes, fre- 

 quenting them for food. Here they pried under the old leaves, 

 searching for worms or insects, scratching and digging with 

 great energy. Throughout these operations I do not recall 

 them using their feet once, but always they pried and scratched 

 and dug with their bills. Towards evening they sought out 

 thick clumps of hemlock or spruce trees, ten to twenty-five feet 

 high, and spent their nights there. 



My memory of the Wild Pigeon portrays it as a very peace- 

 able and sociable bird. Its friendly nature was particularly 

 noticeable when one flock passed another. Birds on the ground, 

 despite their interest in feeding operations, would always take 



