48 



THE OOLOQiSt 



A FIELD OF DICKCISSELS 



While walking through a clover field 

 containing twenty-two acres, late in 

 June, 1921, I found five nests of the 

 Dickcissel. This field fairly swarmed 

 with these birds. As I had about all 

 of the sets of this species which I 

 could use, I did not hunt for tnelr 

 nests very much, but within a few 

 days following my neighbor began to 

 cut the clover, and he promised me 

 that he would mark all of the nests 

 which he saw while mowing the hay, 

 and each noon and evening I would go 

 to the field and make a record of all of 

 the nests which he had found while at 

 work in the field. 



After the hay had been put up I 

 took a walk around the fences of 

 this hay field and counted all of the 

 nests containing eggs and young birds 

 which I could find, and in counting up 

 I had a total of just fifty nests contain- 

 ing eggs and young birds which were 

 in the clover and along the fences 

 around this field. 



I also found six nests that were 

 empty, either new ones which had not 

 been used yet or ones which had been 

 abandoned. 



The nests and eggs which were in 

 the clover were of course destroyed 

 by the mower and hay loader as they 

 passed over them. This is, I thing, 

 an exceptional record, even for a 

 species which is so very common as 

 the Dickcissel is in central Iowa. 



During the hot days of June, July 

 and August when the hot sun beats 

 down upon the ground, the Dick- 

 cissel's ditty can be heard coming 

 from all directions in a locality where 

 they are as abundant as they are in 

 central Iowa. 



After the middle of May fresh eggs 

 may be found, but they are more 

 abundant during June and early July.. 

 During these months their nests may 

 be found in almost any fence row be- 



tween the fields or in thistles grow- 

 ing in fields or pastures. 



The materials most commonly used 

 for the exterior of the nests in this lo- 

 cality, are corn husks and weed stems. 

 The former material predominating 

 and lined with fine grass and a few 

 horse hairs. 



Can any one beat this record for the 

 Dickcissel, or any other species of the 

 fringillidae family? If so, let us hear 

 from them through The Oologist. 



John Cole, 

 Nevada, la. 



GOLDFINCH BUILDING HER NEST 

 IN SEPTEMBER 



On September 1, 1921, in Easton, 

 Maryland, we saw a Goldfinch build- 

 ing her nest in a maple twenty-five 

 feet from the ground. She was 

 gathering material from a lent cater- 

 pillar nest in a neighboring tree and 

 each trip she made was signalized by 

 a happy "chicaree, chicaree." There 

 was no mate in sight. As we had to 

 leave the next day we know nothing 

 of the subsequent history of this late 

 nest. 



Margaret M. Nice, 

 Norman, Okla. 



We once took a set of fine fresh 

 (slightly addled) eggs of this species 

 at Lacon, 111., October 10th. 



R. M. Barnes. 



A WANDERING OOLOGIST 



A card from E. Arnold, mailed on 

 the Island of Jamaica, Feb. 27th, ad- 

 vises us that this well known devotee 

 of The Oological Game, left Montreal 

 January 5th and has been in Cuba 

 and in South and Central America, be- 

 sides Jamaica We hope that he will 

 not substitute interest in the birds' 

 eggs of those countries for his love 

 for North American specimens of 

 which Mr. Arnold has one of the most 

 complete collections in existence. 



R. M. Barnes. 



