THE OOLOGIST. 



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7M 



over the entire surface, but most thickly at 

 the larger end . Measiirement, . 73 by . 53, 

 .71 by .54, .73 by .54, .73 by .54, .74 by .54 

 an cl .74 by .53 in. 



My fourth set was collected on the 19th, 

 same month. It also, contained six fresh 

 eggs, very much like the iweceding set in 

 size and markings. The nest was made of 

 leaves, grass, bark and some fur, placed in 

 natural cavity in top of dead oak stub, 

 twenty feet from the ground. 



My fifth and last set was also collected 

 on the 19th. It contained four eggs, white, 

 with a very slight creamj' tinge, marked 

 with fine reddish brown specks about the 

 larger end, with lilac scattered evenly over 

 the whole surface. The average size is . 70 

 by .54 in. The nest was placed in hollow 

 " stub," fifteen feet from the ground, and 

 was made of leaves, grass etc. 



Peculiarities in Sets and Eggs of a 

 Few of Our Commoner Birds. 



Lately there have appeared several 

 articles on peculiar eggs avfH sets, and I 

 wish to add my mite. 



About 1877, 1 went with au older collect- 

 or to a swamp not far from Marietta, Ohio, 

 and among others, we found a set of Red- 

 wing Blackbird, one egg of which was 

 a runt. It contained an embryo, however, 

 but was so cracked in blowing that I can 

 only approximate its size; it is aboiit 

 .42X.50. 



Either the Red-wing is more addicted to 

 laying odd eggs than other birds, or its 

 abundance brings such cases oftener to our 

 notice, for almost every oologist can show 

 some freak of this kind. I have two sets;' 

 one of four eggs, all which are unspotted, 

 and another set of seven, of which three 

 were x^robably laid by one female and the 

 rest by another; for there is great difference 

 between the two lots, and the four were 

 almost hatched when taken while the others 

 were beginning to addle. 



White Robin and Bluebird eggs are so 

 frequentlj' reported that I will merely say I 

 have found both. 



Passing over a runt egg of the Goldflucji 



measuring .35 x .40, and a set of seven 

 Purple Grackle, I cam's ^ta> a set of - four 

 Crows that is very similar to' "Aye Cayes' 

 in the Jan. Oologist; Nos. 1 and 2 cor- 

 respond perfectly; No. 4 only lacks the 

 large blotch, but No. 3 is just like No. ].. ' 

 and only measures 1. 10 x 1.45. 



Last year I found a Brown Thrasher's 

 egg in a Crow nest, but from appearances , 

 I judged some small boy had' put it there. 

 It was addled, while one of the Crow eggs 

 was pipped. 



Large sets of Flicker eggs are so common 

 that one of 24 barely deserves mention, and 

 the same holds good of_ unspotted eggs of ' 

 the Red-shouldered Hawk; but albino egg ' 

 of Wilson's Tern is quite a rarity; I took 

 mine last year, on Gull^Island, N.' Y. ; there 

 were three eggs in the nest, and the other 

 two were of the usual type. 



I would say in reply to W. J. S., in the 

 Dec. No., that in the two cases that I ob- 

 served of albinism in the Bluebird eggs, the 

 parents were unusually brightly colored. ■ 



C. R. H., New London, Cdiii.'''' ' 



■ ^•^»-*. '.ik Jw/iB 



"White-rumped and Loggerhead 

 Shrikes The Difference. 



Edttob of the Oologist^ ''■''"'■' '^"^ ]iUoinA 



C. B. C, of Odiii;' Iii.';'''w^!?ligr4!6"in-i^' 



through the 6bluiiis of the GoLOGisf, the' 

 dififerencie between the' White-rumped and ' 

 Loggerhead Shrike. Perhaps, the following 

 taken from a comparisih' bf laotU s^ecieS' 

 may be of use to him :' ''^ .d'undT hrv/riT 

 The most noticable difference, aud the' 

 one of greatest' rmportanee, is the trJrite 

 rump feathers of the White-rrimped Shrike, 

 which are grcti/ m ' tlie Loggerhead spricies; 

 again, theentire urideri:>arts of the former 

 are nearly white, while iu the latter spe6ies,' 

 they are light gray. The Loggerhead . 

 Shrike has a larger bill, but as a rule 

 shorter wings and tail thixnits white-rumped 

 cousin, for these birds .are certainly clos&lyi 

 related, and I have no doubt that there are; 

 birds in certain stages of plumage so closely 

 resembling both species as to cause -.the' 

 best ornithologists tb iscrtitch -theiw" heatls 

 before separating thenvi-^J'ji'oo /i nnt'ji I jiii 

 Bespeotfully :yottrSi,»iSl Wj.->BtEisfeDONiOiU 



