26 



THE YOUNG OOLOGlST. 



Nashville Warbler. 



Notes on the Nashville and Hooded 

 Warblers, and Golden-winged Woodpecker 

 from Dighton, Mass. 



On the fourth of June, 1883, I found a 

 nest of this species. The nest was placed 

 in a snarl of briars about six inches from 

 the ground ; it was composed of grape 

 vine bark, dead leaves, and the inner 

 bark of the chestnut, lined with horse-hair 

 and pine needles ; it contained four eggs of 

 a white color with a faint rosy tint, covered 

 irregularly with dots of reddish brown and 

 obscure lilac. Dimensions of the four 

 specimens were, .63x.50 inch ; .58x.48 

 inch ; .60x.48 inch, and .59x.47 inch. 



HOODED WARBLER. 



I found a nest of this species on the 9th 

 of June, 1888. The nest was pensile, 

 attached to the fork of a young white oak, 

 'about four feet from the ground ; it was 

 composed of bark, moss and dead grass, 

 neatly and compactly woven together ; it 

 was suspended in the form of a basket 

 from the forked twig to which it was 

 attached, and deeply hollowed ; it was 

 lined with pine needles and feathers, con- 

 tained four eggs of a dull white, covered 

 with dots of reddish brown at the large 

 end ; average dimensions . 52x. 68 inch. 



GOLDEN-WINGED WOODPECKER. 



On May 6th, 1883, I found in a hole two 

 eggs of this bird ; I took one, leaving the 

 other as a nest egg, and continued to do 

 this day after day, until she had laid 

 seventy-one eggs. The Woodpecker rested 

 two days, taking her seventy-three days to 

 lay seventy-one eggs. I prize this set very 

 highly. 



The Intelligence of Birds. 



C. L. P. 



Skeletons. 



To G. S., Delaware, O. 



The surest and best way to prepare the 

 skeletons of birds and other small animals 

 for collections is, to place the dead body in 

 the midst of an ant-hill ; after leaving it 

 there for a month or so, the flesh will be 

 entirely taken off, and the bones will 

 remain white and unsoiled. The ants are 

 of the common black species, which raise 

 large mounds of earth in the pastures and 

 woods. H. A. Talbot. 



Dr. Charles C. Abbott describes in Science 

 some interesting experiments on the intelli- 

 gence of birds. When he girdled branches 

 on which birds had built their nests and 

 thereby caused the foliage to shrivel up so 

 that the nests were exposed, the birds 

 abandoned the nests, although they had 

 already laid their eggs. But in a case in 

 which the nest already contained young 

 birds, the old birds remained, notwith- 

 standing the exposure of the nest, until the 

 young ones were able to fly. He placed a 

 number of pieces of woolen yarn — red, 

 yellow, purple, green and gray in color — 

 near a tree in which a pair of Baltimore 

 orioles were building a nest. The pieces 

 of yarn were all exactly alike except in 

 color. There was an equal number of each 

 color, and the red and yellow pieces were 

 purposely placed on top. The birds chose 

 only the gray pieces, putting in a few 

 purple and blue ones when the nest was 

 nearly finished. Not a red, yellow or green 

 strand was used. Dr. Abbott concludes 

 from his observations of the building of 

 birds's nests that the female birds is exact- 

 ing, obstinate and tyranical, and not at all 

 disposed to give in to the wishes of her 

 lord and master. The site of the nest is 

 selected after careful examination of suita- 

 ble locations by both birds. 



There is an island on the coast of Cali- 

 fornia, which is covered by three acres of 

 eggs. A sea captain who recently visited 

 it says the island is of rock with a surface 

 of about three acres. It is covered with 

 guano, in which sea fowls of all descrip- 

 tions were found laying or incubating their 

 eggs. The surface appeared to be almost 

 entirely covered with eggs, principally 

 those of sea-gulls, shaggs, and a small bird 

 known as the salt-water duck. He says it 

 was difficult to walk without treading on 

 the eggs, and a ship could be easily loaded 

 with them. 



The above clipping was sent to us by a 

 friend in New York City. 



