8 



THE BITTERN 



garden. The crown of its head is 

 nearly pure white, the white extending 

 down to the nape and gradually losing 

 itself in the natural body color. — 

 — Editor. 



Some may think that a tramp to the 

 leafless woods in early spring would be 

 monotonous, but the ornithological 

 student already has his eyes open and 

 is on the lookout for the early nesters. 

 On warm, sunshiny days in February 

 when the balmy zephyrs blow from 

 the west and the cheery voice of the 

 bluebird is heard from somewhere 

 high in the atmosphere 30U may know 

 that spring is fast approaching and 

 that soon we will have all the birds 

 back again. "The piping bluebird is 

 come again." — Frank Varcells, 

 Marion, la. 



Mr. Charles R. Keyes, one of the 

 old reliable ornithologists of Iowa, has 

 located in California. Our loss is Cal- 

 ifornia's gain. His Iowa friends wish 

 Brother Keyes success in his new home 

 and hope to hear from him often 

 through The Bittern.— C. F. H. 



Dr. Amon R. Shearer, Mount Bel- 

 view, Texas, writes us about the loss 

 of bird life during the September gale. 

 Our readers may look for a few words 

 from his pen in our next issue. — C. 

 F. H. 



Our friend, Chas. C. Tryon, who 

 until recently published The Western 

 Orn^f/iologi.sf, has accepted a position 

 in the United States army and is doing 

 well in the government service. Brother 

 Tryon expects soon to be ordered to 

 foreign service, though whether it will 



be Cuba or Philippines has not yet 

 been decided. — C. F. H. 



Donald A. Cohen, Alameda, Cal., 

 business manager of T/te Condor, has 

 returned from his outing, a couple of 

 days' hunting for game and specimens 

 in the mountains and on the marsh, 

 with fair luck. — C. F. H. 



PHOTOGRAPHEr) FROM NATURE 



GENUS HOMO 



Common Name — Hathorn. 



Habitat — Cedar Rapids and vicinity, 

 sometimes migrating (by the light of 

 the moon) to bordering states. 



Description- — Crown, light chestnut; 

 other parts, brownish-white; iris, blue. 



Length — Sixty-six inches. 



A few general notes on this rare [}) 

 species might be of interest to the 

 readers of The Bittern, as I doubt if 

 many of you have ever had the oppor- 

 tunity of seeing it in its natural haunts, 

 but the fact of the matter is the writer 

 has a little respect for other people's 

 feelings, and — well, let that pass. 



(Godwin Osgod. 



Sigxpdamkciiibtlm, Conn. 



