83 



THE OOLOGIST. 



that of an old woman gathering up her 

 hens' eggs or killing a few chickens for 

 market. She. is just as inuch of an 

 ornithologist or oologisfc as they are. 

 In fact their object in view is clearly 

 mercenary. 



This manner of collecting should be 

 stopped; and anyone who will stand by 

 and see our native birds being rapidly 

 exterminated should be ashamed of 

 himself. 



Two other things to be done away 

 with are "pot-hunters" and "plume 

 hunters." Take for instance the Wild 

 .Turkey, it is surely following the fate 

 of the Great Auk. As to the doings of 

 the "plume hunters" I can not do better 

 than to refer you to Dr. F. W.Langtou's 

 "Destruction of our Native Birds," in 

 OOLOGIST, vol. 5, No. 4. 



There is a fourth enemy to our poor 

 birds; this last is the English Sparrow 

 {Pugnacuis irampus) and the destruc- 

 tion caused by these pests everyone 

 knows. 



I think the way these evils could be 

 remedied would be this: In the- first 

 place laws should be made forbidding 

 the collecting of eggs except for strictly 

 scientitic purposes. These laws should 

 be very stringent. The next two evils 

 could be gotten over by strengthening 

 the game laws." 



The last is only to be put down by 

 uniting and striving "with tooth and 

 nail" to drive out that little pest, the 

 English Sparrow. 



Now we should not let these matters 

 stand, they have already stood far too 

 long and I make an appeal to every ti-i/c 

 ornithologist and oologist to help rem- 

 edj' these great evils. 



Could a society not be ft)rmed to 

 more quickly obtain these objects? 



I would like to see an article in the 

 Oologist written by a more experi- 

 enced hand than mine. I hope that the 

 ornithologists and oologists of America 

 will remember that collecting is but a 



secondary consideration and that study 

 is the first. 



(t. M. Leslie, 

 Hamilton, Out. 



The Otinese or Mongolian Pheasant in Idaho. 



A fcAv years ago several pairs of this 

 gay-plumaged bird were imported from 

 their native home in China, and turned 

 loose in Oregon, the State Legislature 

 giving them the protection of the game 

 laws of that State. Since that time 

 these birds have increased rapidly. A 

 pair of old birds will in one season 

 hatch and bring up sometimes as many 

 as three broods of young, each brood 

 ranging from 13 to 25 young birds. 



During the spring and summer 

 months their shrill cry, very much re- 

 sembling their domestic cousin's voice, 

 may be heard in the meadows and 

 wheat fields. In the winter they be- 

 take themselvs to the low ground 

 around small lakes and along grassy 

 river bottoms. I have often Avhile 

 hunting ducks, scared them up among 

 bands of snipe and Avild ducks. 



The male of these birds is beautiful. 

 The breast is a brilliant red-brown. 

 The back and wings are of a bright 

 sti-aw color mingled with green and 

 bronze. The neck is bright green witli 

 a bronze tinge and a ring of pure white 

 feathers encircles the neck. The head 

 is surmounted with two tufts of feath- 

 ers, resembling horns, and the tail 

 which is composed of sevei-al long 

 feathers, is of dark olive color. The fe- 

 male is of a duller color, being dark ol- 

 ive-purple striped wi\h lighter gray 

 bands. The meat of these birds is very 

 white and delicious; fully equalling 

 that of the Sabine Grouse {Bonasa 

 sahmii), or the Dusky Grouse [Telrao- 

 obscurus. 



Clay McNamee, 

 Moscow, Idaho. 



