• X H e: • 



Ornithologist ^ Botanist. 



P£VOTED TO NATURE AND POULTRY. 



AdYCTtisfne Sltesf iPer Inch, Sl.OO } ClrCUhtiOn 2|S00 CopJSS MOllthlji { ExchanleCohl 



Vol. II. 



Des Moines, Iowa, July i, 1892. 



No 6. 



Explorations, Navigations and Peram- 

 bulations in Nature. 



WEITTEN FOB THE O. AND B. 



Owing to recent rains in the basins of the 

 Des Moines & Coon Rivers, both the rivers are 

 badly swollen. In fact the oldest inhabitant 

 says ifs the highest he has seen it since '.58 hnt 

 citizens of a more recent migration to this place 

 say they have seen it higher, but it is sufhcient 

 to say that thousands of acres in their valleys 

 are flooded and the scenes of many of my form- 

 er explorations are under water or at least sur- 

 rounded by water of varying depths. The water 

 is much above tlie perpendicular banks of the 

 river where so often have I collected the eggs of 

 bank swallow and his much rarer cousin, the 

 rough winged swallow. These little birds were 

 just conamencing their summer's work of incu- 

 bating when the waters came to destroy them. 

 Many of these little cliff dwellers are flying over 

 the rapid, muddy stream, vainly trying to find 

 their subterranean home and I have no doubt 

 but that more than one of them were drowned 

 before an exit could be made. This would be 

 especially true with those whose nest were high- 

 er than the entrance to their artificial cavern. 

 As 1 looked across the water for the familiar 

 low lands covered with hazel brush and cotton- 

 wood trees, I was surprised to find these trees 

 standing in water fully 1".2 feet deep. The tops 

 of a few high knolls were visible here and there, 

 and still ofteuer could be seen the tops of the 

 hazel brush that stood on slight elevations. 



These elevatioTis of land and the hazel brush 

 were literally covered with birds. Some were 

 so familiar to me that I at once recognized 

 them even at a long distance, but the great ma- 

 jority I was unable to tell exactly what they 

 were. 



I moved up the stream a little ways and in 

 rounding a bend I flushed a large solitary bird 

 of a dark, sooty brown color, with a bright red 

 tail. It was fully one hundred yards off and on 

 the wing, and it circled quite close to me but I 

 could not identify it. 



A little farther up I came to a pile of drift 

 wood and brush lodged along the bank. Hop- 

 ping among this floating debris I noticed a Bal- 

 timore oriole; a little farther along I noticed a 

 scarlet tanger flying low along the bank. It 

 alighted in a little depression filled with leaves 

 and when I commenced to stir among them I 

 felt something hard and to my great joy I dis- 

 covered a boat, carefully hidden among the 

 It was right side up and nearly half full 



of water, with the oars laid on top of the thwarts 

 and then covered. I removed the leaves turned 

 the boat up side down and pulled it toward the 

 water. Although it was nothing but a flat bot- 

 tomed, home-made "mud scow" with a pointed 

 bow. I didn't hesitate to trust myself in her. I 

 gave it a violent push and leaped into her and 

 began my battle with the current. It was hard 

 rowing up stream but I crossed the current fi- 

 nally after much dodging of drift wood. Had 

 any of those logs come in contact with my frail 

 craft I should have been precipitated to the bot- 

 tom of the river, and whether I would have im- 

 proved my time gathering Unio while there I 

 don't know; probably not. Well, after crossing 

 the current I rowed straight across those low 

 lands before mentioned, and although I would 

 some times come in contact with the tops of 

 hazel brush under the water, I made fairly good 

 progress and thus cut off about two miles of 

 river current by rowing only a quarter of a 

 mile. 



But so far as studying the Avi-Fauna goes I 

 might just as well have stayed on shore, for as 

 I made my self present on these little islets the 

 birds made themselves scarce. I could not get 

 a good look at any except a few herring gulls 

 and the bird with the red tail. I now managed 

 to cut off another two or three miles over a 

 peninsular sandbar, but could find nothing of 

 note except the omui-preseut herring gulls. 



How ever, my trip, though dangerous when 

 crossing the channel, was a very pleasant one, 

 and not altogether unprofitable, fori managed 

 to get close enough to the banks to feel for some 

 bank swallows' holes. I at last found one and 

 getting into the water I dug it out and found 

 only three eggs; although worth only ic. each I 

 consider them quite a prize under the circun- 

 stances. It was now nearly six o'clock and I 

 turned the boat down stream; with currerft and 

 wind in my favor I soon reached the starting 

 point and placed the boat back where I found it. 

 I doubt much if the owner ever missed it. 



I now wended my way toward my suburban 

 home, to find my supper waiting me. The next 

 afternoon. May Hth, I had quite an adventure. 

 Being particularly interested in seeing the bio- 

 logical results of the high water on the upper 

 'Coon as well as the lower, I took a street car 

 and when I arrived at the extreme west end 

 (this car goes at least about three miles out inte 

 the country, nearly parallel with the river), I 

 got off and turned my face toward equatorial 

 America and soon came to the river. 



I examined the bank to see if the water was 

 receding, but could find no trace of it. I there 



k. 



igm' 



