ISSUED IN BEHALF OF THE SCIENCE WHICH IT ADVOCATES. 



Volume II, 



FEBRUARY, 1877. 



Number 12. 



A New Feature in the Cowbird's 

 History. 



fHILE collecting in the LoAver Cross- 

 timbers April 1.3th, '77, I detected 

 a pair of Blue-gray Gnalcatchers, 

 buildiug a nest on a small post oak tree ; 

 the nest was placed on a horizontal branch, 

 was li inches in diameter, seven feet from 

 the trunk and fifteen feet high. So little 

 Avork had been done on the nest that I could 

 hardly detect the place, only when the birds 

 were at it. While the birds were gone af- 

 ter material, a female 3Iolathrus pecoris 

 alighted in the tree and seemed to be in- 

 specting the foundation of the structure ; but 

 when the parents returned they soon flogged 

 her out. Thinking she might be after a 

 nest in which to deposit her eggs, I made a 

 note of the circumstance and continued my 

 collecting. 



On April 24th I returned to the place 

 and found the nest to contain three eggs of 

 the Gnatcatchers and one of the Cowbirds. 

 It therefore seems possible that the Cow- 

 bird does procure a nest before it is actual- 

 ly needed, although the opinions of some 

 writers would lead to the contrary. 



I have noted that about 50 per cent, of 

 the nests commenced by P. ccMrulea are de- 

 stroyed before completion, and that eighty 

 per cent, of these are totally obliterated. 



I have never detected the cause of this de- 

 struction, but think it probable that it may 

 be attributed principally to the Cowbird. 

 A battle may ensue, in which the structure 

 is entirely demolished. G. H. Ragsdale. 

 G ainesv tile , Texas . 



[Such information as from time to time 

 has fallen under our notice, corroborates the 

 theory of our correspondent, that the Cow- 

 bird not unfrequently has its nesting-places 

 selected before the owners have deposited 

 any eggs. There is nothing extraordinary 

 in this fact, and it cannot be anything more 

 than an habitual practice with this bird, to 

 afterward frequent nests in which no eggs 

 were previously deposited. It is very sel- 

 dom that a Cowbird occupies a nest before 

 it contains any of the eggs of the owners, 

 for we can readily perceive that even so 

 humble and defamed a bird, is endowed with 

 sufficient instinct to know that both nest 

 and its egg or eggs would certainly be aban- 

 doned by the unfortunate owner, in that 

 case ; hence the habit, as intimated in the 

 above paper, of awaiting the occupancy of 

 the nest by one or more eggs of the possess- 

 ors, in which case there would be less ten- 

 dency on the part of the latter to desert 

 the eggs. — Ed. W.] 



A €UKious egg was foiand in the nest of 

 a Lark Finch recently, by Mr. Ragsdale. 



