72 



THE OOLOGIST. 



three eggs, with chicks nearly hatched, 

 nest same iu construction as the above. 

 July 2, a nest was brought to me contain- 

 ing three eggs far advanced in incubation. 

 This nest was found in a cornfield in the 

 same situation that the Lark Fincli (Ghon- 

 destes grammaca) chooses. The nest was 

 not as elaborately constructed as previous 

 ones, and seemed to have a little mud in 

 its construction. 



There is no doubt in my mind that the 

 variety breeding here is the leucolcema, as 

 the markings on the head and throat agree 

 with Dr. Coues' description. The birds 

 shot in the winter vary, in the color of these 

 markings, from a bright yellow to almost 

 pure white, but in the summer I have nev- 

 er seen any but those with white markings. 



The eggs are of a clay-color, thickly 

 sprinkled with small spots of light brown, 

 thicker at the large end, on some specimens 

 forming a sort of wreath. The birds be- 

 gin to lay about the 10 of April, lay from 

 three to four or five eggs, and raise two 

 broods a year. A nest of this species was 

 found this year on March 4, containing four 

 eggs ; a nest of the Prairie Chicken with 

 three eggs was found on the same date, the 

 earliest instance of eggs being found that I 

 have heard of. 'Jliree days after a severe 

 snow storm covered the nests up. 



" EUSPIZA." 



The Great-crested Flycatcher. 



(^llyiarchus crinifus.) 



fyiHIS very irregular and I am inclined to 

 -^ think, rare summer visitor, arrives in 

 middle New England during the first two 

 weeks in May, and wanders into all these 

 States. According to Nuttall, this species 

 is nearly unknown in the Eastern States, 

 and yet I have found several pairs breeding 

 in North Conway (White Mts.) , N. H. He 

 is equally pugnacious with the King-bird, 

 yet unlike his brother, he resorts to the 

 more thickly wooded portions of the coun- 

 try, and seems to shun the vicinity of man. 

 Woe betide the poor bird, that happens to 



come anywhere near our hero's nest, for 

 he is first terribly scolded, then driven from 

 the neighborhood. He feeds upon insects 

 which he catches in the manner of a true 

 Flycatcher. 



The nest is usually built iu a hollow tree 

 or deserted Woodpecker's hole. One very 

 handsome nest which I found was built in 

 an old Flicker's hole in a dead poplar stump, 

 twelve feet from the ground, on the shore 

 of Echo Lake (North Conway). The nest 

 was composed of moss, hair, grass, wool, 

 and fragments of cast-ofi' snake skins, which 

 latter article seems indispensable for the 

 nest of this bird, as one is seldom found 

 without it. The nest contained four young 

 birds, which, when taken from the nest, 

 pecked fui-iously. While I was examining 

 the young ones, the adult birds manifested 

 the greatest concern for the welfare of their 

 progeny. They flew around and at me, 

 sometimes coming within a few feet, and 

 uttering at intervals of a few seconds, their 

 scolding, pee'-wip^ pay-wip. At times the 

 young ones would try to answer the call of 

 their parents, and when this was heard by 

 the old ones, they seemed perfectly frantic, 

 and would fly quite close to my hands. An- 

 other nest which I found in the same town 

 was built in a Downy Woodpecker's hole 

 in an apple tree, in an orchard, about nine 

 feet from the ground, and was composed of 

 the same materials as the former. This 

 nest contained three young birds. 



About the middle of September they leave 

 for the south. C. Algkr Hawes. 



Some Hybrids ; No. 1 .^Invited by a 

 friend to visit what he called a remarkable 

 freak of nature, we passed into the extreme 

 northern limits of the city of Chicago to an 

 obscure saloon of a German. Here, splen- 

 didly mounted and in a fine case was a feast 

 to the eyes of any naturalist : an Owl, half 

 of the Snowy and half the Great Horned 

 species. It was a most wonderful bird. 

 Massive legs and feet of snowy white ; a 

 head nearly white, with ear-tufts not over 

 an inch in length ; wings on the outside. 



