30 



THE OOLOGIST. 



exhibitions i f that ]H-cn]iiir vnltnriiie habit 

 of disgorging the food, convinced me that 

 I did not want a varied assortment of 

 skins. 



It is impossible to say whetiier this bird 

 will become abundant in the future, but 

 reasoning from the climate and various 

 causes not inviting to this family of birds, 

 I should say not. As yet, I have not heard 

 of the apjiearance of this sj^ecics beyond 

 the 44 ° north latitude, but it may readily 

 be conjectured that the tireless, wings of 

 this rapidly soaring ghoul may have taken 

 it to onr northern confines. 



Birds have been taken in the mouths of 

 April, May up to .the 15th, July, August 

 and September. Uuce two birds were 

 taken in this county in July, which hnrl 

 only quitted home and mother during the 

 past month, and the imperfect quills sug- 

 gested that they were Michigan birds; a 

 view that was to be disproved l)y the man- 

 ner in which they si ared away when 

 liberated. Over the Indiana line, less than 

 100 miles from here, this species is plenti- 

 ful, showing that a few miles may make a 

 vast difference even with birds endowed 

 with great endurance and expanse of 

 wing. 



FALCONID.i; . 



Vultures, Falcons. Hawks, Eagles etc. 

 fJlanoides foifirutus (Linn). Swallow- 

 tailed Kite. First mentioned by Hon. D. 

 D. Hughes, in his valuable Mss. notes on 

 Michigan birds, to which I have had suc- 

 cess. W. H. Collins, the Detroit Ornithol- 

 ogist snd Taxidermist, writes me: "One 

 specimen taken seven miles fiom the city 

 in the summer of 1878, now in the museinii 

 of the Detroit Scientific Association."' 



The Wild Turkey. 



It is imposs ble for me to treat this sub- 

 ject properly, from lack of observation; 

 but, perhaps, what little can be said may 

 inteiest some. 



This now rare game bird may still be 

 found in some of the Eastern States, but 

 hs doesn't appear on every occasion. The 

 writer caught a glimpse of oue th^ past 



fall, but was obliged to content himself 

 with that. 



'J'he locality visited was in the Piedmont 

 region of ^'a., about Honiihsfrom the city 

 of Washington, D. C Here quite large 

 flocks !\ve to be found in the 'old fiehl' 

 woods, wliicji str<tch away for miles, broken 

 only by occasional deserted clearings. The 

 timber is pine, bn)ken by hard wood on 

 knolls an along streams. 



The natives of this region wage success- 

 ful war on this noble game in early autumn 

 from 'blinds' erected near favorite feeding 

 grounds. The writer counted 20 of these 

 structures in a day while hunting. Some 

 few of the backwoodsmen still set log-trajis: 

 with what success I do not know. 



Taken altogether, the " bird of Thanks- 

 giving '■ has a hard t.me of it. From the 

 time when h.s mother hides her sj^eckied 

 treasures from the mink and raccoon till 

 he falls before the rilie or shot gun of the 

 hunter, he is beset by snares and dangers 

 of all kinds. 



Wet weather thins the flocks of young 

 birds, as does also the " varmint.'^." When 

 a Lttle larger, he is lured to an eaily death 

 by the call of the hunter fiom the blind, 

 but should he survive the perils of two or 

 three seasons, what gamier bJrd steps the 

 woodland ? Monarch of the flock, his 

 call is oheyed as he treads the fragrant 

 pine needles, alwa\s alert for hidden danger 

 be it fox or huuier. At a near approach 

 he lises find sails or runs as fast as his long 

 legs will carry him to a safe retreat. Lucky 

 the hunter whose quick and steady hand 

 and eye can bring him down. It is not all 

 who are thus gifted. Some must be con- 

 tent with grouse, quail, rabbits or squirrel 

 until experience has taught its lesson. 



The boundless woods and pure air give 

 the huuier a pleasant senssa ion which is ap- 

 preciated by those who have felt it. and a 

 tremendous appetite is tlie usual result of 

 n day's turkes hunting. 



Jome down frnui yonr snowy North and 

 Western plains and hunt with us in the 

 pine forests of the Old Dominion for 

 Mt^ldiffn'x f/ii/lojHirn (UiicriauKi. 



A. Jl. l"\, Bennii gs, D. C. 



