3§ 



tHE YOUNG OOLOGIST. 



Date of Arrivals for 1884. 



Orchard Oriole. 



(From the note book of an Otsego County 

 Collector.) 



March 18— Blue Birds ; R. and B. S. 

 Black Birds. 



March 20— Meadow Larks and Robins. 



March 22 — Song Sparrows; Pewees. 



March 23 — Ducks, in small flocks. 



March 26 — Geese; Passenger Pigeons. 



March 30— Belted King Fishers ; Gr. 

 Blue Herons. 



April 13— Red Tailed Hawks; Purple 

 Grakles and Swamp Sparrows. 



April 14 — Golden Winged Woodpecker; 

 Field Sparrows. 



April 15 — Sparrow Hawks; Wood Pe- 

 wee; Red-headed Woodpeckers. 



April 18 — Spotted Sandpiper; Chipping 

 Sparrow. 



April 22 — Barn Swallow; Cliff Swallow 

 and Woodcock. 



April 25 — Cow Bird ; Chimney Swift; 

 House Wren. 



May 3 — Rose Breasted Gresbeak; Green 

 Heron; Goldfinches; Wilson Thrush. 



May 5— Bait. Oriole; Bobolink; M. Yel- 

 low Throat; King Bird; Cat Bird. 



Took clutch of crow's egg, first of the 

 season, in freezing weather, April 14 

 April 19th I took my first clutch of eggs of 

 the Red Tailed Hawk. The nest was 

 placed in a hemlock tree, about forty feet 

 from the ground. In the lining I noticed 

 some thin pine shavings. I have found 

 many nests of the Red Tailed HaAvk, but 

 have never been able to obtain the eggs be- 

 fore. On the same day I found five nests 

 of the crow, containing 5, 6, 4, 5 and 2 

 eggs, respectively. On April 25th I hap- 

 pened near the nest from which I had taken 

 the only two eggs a few days before, and 

 saw the crow leave the nest. On climbing 

 the tree I found two more eggs, one of 

 about the ordinary size, and the other, upon 

 measuring, I found to be 1.58x2.40 ins., 

 the largest I have ever seen. May 10th I 

 saw two nests of the Green Heron in pro- 

 cess of construction. From the 4th until 

 the 12th of May it rained every day, and 

 nesting has been going on rather slowly. 

 F. L. R., West Burlington, N. Y. 



(icterus spurieus.) 

 This is another of our beautiful summer 

 visitors, arriving about the middle of April. 

 They commence to build about the 10th 

 of May, but last summer while collecting 

 in Beaufort County, S. C, I found a nest 

 on May 9th, which contained three eggs. 

 1 have looked back through my note book, 

 but this is the earliest case that I can find. 

 Here in Georgia I never found them earlier 

 than the 16th of May. 



They build a beautiful nest, perfect, as a 

 work of art surpassing anything I have 

 ever seen in the nest line. Outwardly it is 

 composed of a species of long, green grass, 

 lined with the down of the Scotch thistle, 

 which mades it very soft and warm, and is 

 placed on the extreme end of a limb among 

 the thick foliage, almost defying detection 

 except to the experienced collector.' 



The eggs are from three to five in num- 

 ber, and varying somewhat in size, are of 

 a light blue color marked with blotches 

 and lines of black umber and shades of 

 purple. 



The Orchard Oriole is a good songster, 

 having a clear and musical note. The 

 birds are easily reared, and are often 

 found in cages, where they seem quite 

 contented. 



In Georgia they seem to prefer the 

 sweet gum tree, at all events I have found 

 them of tener in these trees than any other. 

 I have found as many as six nests in less 

 than a quarter of a mile. There is one 

 striking peculiarity about the nesting of 

 this bird that I have noticed; this is that 

 out of nine nests that I found one day last 

 summer, with the exception of two, I also 

 found the nest of the kingbird placed in 

 the same tree and near the Oriole's nest. 

 Whether this holds good as a rule in other 

 places I am unable to say. T. D. Perry. 



Long-eared Owl. 



On March 22d, this year, I found a 

 Long-eared Owl's nest, containing two eggs 

 and one young owl. 



W. W. G.,'Stoughton, Wis. 



