THE OOLOGIST 



81 



Hawk's nest of the previous year we 

 flushed an Owl. The nest was up 

 about thirty feet in a large cottonwood 

 tree and almost bare of limbs but with 

 climbers we were soon able to reach 

 it. We were rewarded by finding a 

 set of two, slightly incubated. Think- 

 ing perhaps that the pair would nest 

 again we visited the locality on the 

 19th of March or three weeks later. 

 They had moved to another old nest 

 in a cottonwood tree about 200 yards 

 soutlieast of nest No. 1. Here we 

 again flushed the female We should 

 state that each time we were able to 

 see the male by the aid of the crows 

 which were continually harrassing 

 him. This tree wa's larger than the 

 other but nest up only about twenty- 

 five feet. Here we found another set 

 of two fresh eggs. We certainly ap- 

 preciated the kindness of this pair of 

 Owls for furnishing us two sets in one 

 season, but \^ere curious enough to 

 visit the place again in three weeks, 

 and not surprised to find them gone 

 entirely from the woods. We arrived 

 at this conclusion after a thorough 

 search on our part and from the fact 

 there were an abundance of crows and 

 not fighting Owls. However, we were 

 not discouraged and still wondered 

 what would happen one year hence. 

 On March 4th, 1922 we again visited 

 the locality, going first to nest No. 1 

 of 1921, which we found nearly blown 

 to pieces by the storms of the past 

 winter. We then started toward nest 

 No. 2 and lo, and behold, we saw Mrs. 

 Owl at home, and a few rods away the 

 Crows were fighting the male. This 

 time we took a beautiful set of three, 

 incubation advanced about one week. 

 We wondered what to expect in the 

 future as we were almost certain that 

 they were the same pair that tried so 

 hard to raise a brood here last year, 

 but in visiting the place on March 27th 

 we again found the female on the 

 same nest just starting in to hatch 



two more eggs. Yes, with just a little 

 reluctance we took them. We nave no 

 positive proof that they were the same 

 pair that tried to nest there last year, 

 but think we have the right to assume 

 that they were. Then from the fact of 

 the strong instinct of Owls and other 

 birds to return each year to their old 

 nesting places, and, that in this region 

 nesting places are not over abundant, 

 leads us to form the above conclusion. 

 Four sets from the same parents in 

 two seasons. Shall we visit their 

 haunts again this spring? Yes, but Ave 

 hardly expect another set Then, too, 

 we do not have the heart to look those 

 old Owls in the face again. We are 

 satisfied. 



W. H. Over, 

 Vermillion, South Dakota. 



NOTICE 



Bent's Life Histories of North Ameri- 

 can Gulls and Terns, can now be pur- 

 chased for $1.25 of the Superintendent 

 of Public Documents, Government 

 Printing Office, D. C, and the edition 

 is now already nearly exhausted. We 

 would advise our friends who desire 

 to secure this spledid contribution to 

 North American Bird Literature to at- 

 tend to the matter at once. — R. M. B. 



COWBIRD AND YELLOWTHROAT 



My notebook for Logan County, Illi- 

 nois, 1913, June 21, records a Mary- 

 land Yellowthroat caring for a young 

 Cowbird about twice her own size. It 

 could fly very well and it flew to a 

 bush near me while its foster-mother 

 sat, not far away, with food in her 

 bill. She was plainly agitated by my 

 presence and showed her nervousness 

 by flitting from place to place, chirp- 

 ing. 



I caught the young Cowbird by sud- 

 denly clapping my hand over it. It 

 squawked lustily and both Yellow- 

 throats, the male and the female, were 

 immediately on the field of action, a'g 



