THE OOLOGIST. 



99 



ican Birds." His system begins with the 

 sub-class Incessores. The other American 

 sub-classes are Cursores and Natatores, In 

 the New World the birds are divided into 

 twelve orders and eighty-one families. Be- 

 sides these there are in the Old World thir- 

 ty families not represented in the New. 

 The publications of Dr. Sclater and Mr. 

 Salvin relative to American birds also fol- 

 low Prof. Lilljeborg's system. We are in- 

 debted to Dr. Brewer for these interesting 

 facts. 



General Items. 



— BiKDS in North Carolina are already 

 beginning to nest. We have received no- 

 tice, also, of the preparations of Kansas 

 birds for nesting. 



— The House Sparrow has found that in 

 some places it cannot intrude with impuni- 

 ty. The Crow Blackbird has in many 

 cases shown itself to be a formidable ene- 

 my of this bird, and is not disposed to yield 

 its nesting places to an uninvited species. 

 Not long since, a great tumult was heard 

 among the trees of a lawn in the city of 

 Utica, which had been a favorite nesting 

 place of the Blackbirds for a score or more 

 of years. The Sparrows had reached the 

 garden and disputed its possession with 

 their new antagonists. The Blackbirds 

 resented the intrusion, and, though the Spar- 

 rows persistently defied their efforts to oust 

 them, the Blackbirds were not disposed to 

 surrender. The conflict has thus far con- 

 tinued for nearly two weeks, and from pres- 

 ent appearances, bids fair to last as much 

 longer. Of course the result will be looked 

 to with interest. 



— Owls seem to take a fancy to city life. 

 Not long since, we had occasion to itemize 

 an account of the killing of a Snowy Owl 

 in the act of purloining a fowl, by a woman 

 in this city. Quite recently, a Great Horn- 

 ed Owl was taken in the heart of the city. 

 It evidently was not an escaped one, and 

 the query arises : What induces this owl- 

 ish freak ? 



PROSPECTUS. 



A Monthly Journal devoted to the Study 

 of Birds and their Eggs. 



SEEIES rOK 1878. 



This is the only monthly in North A- 

 merica that is devoted to the study of 

 Oology as a specialty, and the growing 

 favor with which it has been received by 

 collectors throughout the country, has ne- 

 cessitated a corresponding increase in its 

 scope. Volume IV. will, as heretofore, 

 contain ornithological and oological ma- 

 terial wherewith to form a valuable work 

 for reference. Each number will contain 

 eight pages of closely printed matter, and 

 the whole will be placed within a hand- 

 some cover. It is needless for us to say 

 that our forthcoming volume will be de- 

 sirable to every ornithologist, when we 

 mention such contributors as Mr. Geo. 

 B. Sennett, Mr. W. H. Ballou, and oc- 

 casionally Dr. Brewer and Mr. C. J. 

 Maynard, besides a large number of ob- 

 servers whose interesting notes are pub- 

 lished only in this paper. 



Terms, 60 cents a year, postpaid j 

 With Colored Plate of Eggs, 75 cents. 

 Address The Oologist, 



Oneida Street, Utica, N. Y. 



(Our volume begins with March.) 



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