THE OOLOCIST. 



97 



tlie same piece of woods excepting four 

 sets taken in an adjoining timber tract not 

 •over half a mile distant; the nest was com- 

 posed of the blossoms of the beech, fine 

 rootlets, a few fine grasses and cobwebs, 

 woven together and bound to the fork in 

 ■which it was invariably located in a very 

 loose wably manner. The eggs were 

 usually three (seven sets of four were 

 taken) in number of a pale creamy white, 

 quite pointed at smaller end with numerous 

 spots clearly defined of a rusty reddish 

 brown, more profuse at the upper middle 

 and larger end of the eggs. The sharp 

 chirp of the female often repeated was an 

 infalable guide to its nest. 



Later in the season when most of our 

 breeders had ceased their domestic duties 

 in this direction did I begin to search for 

 some sign of the Trail's, which I had reason 

 to know from previous experience were 

 sure to be found amongst the alder bottoms 

 of a small river several miles from our 

 town. I paid my first visit to them July 

 1st, and I had the good fortune to secure 

 four full sets, all fresh and very fine. I 

 also discovered two pairs l)uilding which I 

 collected on my next trip. One set more 

 taken from a small red willow completed 

 my finds thus far, and I gave them up feel- 

 ing well satisfied. 



The eggs of these birds are not dis- 

 tinguishable from each other except that 

 the number of the Trail's is usually four, 

 while those of the former are more often 

 three. 



It is of the nest I wish to speak, Davie 

 says the nest of this species is not so com- 

 pactly built as those of the Acadian. 



He is surely wrong, this bird builds a 

 very compact and snug little nest, very 

 much resembling the Redstart, and it is 

 usually placed in the fork of an alder-bush, 

 and as we have to rely on its nest for identi- 

 ficalion it is more than likely that some of 

 our collectors that relied upon Davie's 

 statement have sets wrongly marked, as the 

 Trail's certainly builds the more substantial 

 nest of the two. 



Will C. Brownell, 

 Plymonth, Mich. 



•-«^«- 



Experience "With a Great Horned Owl. 



One cold day on the 26th of March. 1887, 

 a friend of mine and myself started out to 

 hunt up a Great Horned Owl's nest which 

 we thought to be in a small stretch of 



woods by the creek, after searching the 

 woods thoroughly, as we thought, we were 

 beginning to retrace our steps when my 

 friend looked up and saw a large hole in an 

 elm some twenty feet up, and said, "I 

 believe that is the nest." 



As we had no climbing irons at that time 

 we did not care to climb the tree unless we 

 were sure it was the nest, so we threw up 

 clubs and pounded against the tree to see 

 if we could (if it was a nest) scare the old 

 owl out, but all with no success, and were 

 beginning to despair when I found a long 

 fence-board, and by considerable pushing 

 I managed to boost my friend to the first 

 limb ; after that, • it was not so hard for 

 him. 



When he had got about five feet from 

 the nest, the old bird flew out, and sure 

 enough it was the Great Horned Owl. 



The nest was nearly as large as a bushel 

 basket and about as deep; it contained the 

 eggs. He had just time to note this when 

 I heard a whizzing noise, and looked up 

 and saw the old owl strike him on the left 

 temple with so much force that it nearly 

 knocked him over backwards out of the 

 tree. 



He did not at first know what had struck 

 him and kept calling down to me to stop 

 throwing up clubs. In a minute he found 

 out what was the matter, and began 

 descending when the old bird made another 

 dive at him, but did not touch him. When 

 he reached the ground I went up and 

 secured the eggs. They were slightly 

 incubated. H. B. Hurd, 



Minneapolis, Minn. 



The Largest Collection. . 



In your March-May nuniber it is stated 

 that Dr. Phil. Edward A. Baldamus of 

 Coburg, Germany, has the largest collection 

 of birds eggs in the world. 



Last January Mr. Philip Crowley, Croy- 

 don, England, favored me with a catalogue 

 of his collection and I find that he has 

 listed 2,492 species and varieties, besides 

 this, in his letier he states that he has added 

 about 600 species to his collection since the 

 catalogue was printed, which will bring 

 the number up to about 3.100 on the 18tli 

 of January, 1887. Now, as Dr. Baldamus' 

 collection numbered only 1,667 species ami 

 varieties, it will be seen that instead of th(^ 

 Doctor's being the largest collection Mr. 

 Crowley's will nearly double it. 



J. A. SiNttLEY. 



Friend S. is correct. We have a cata- 

 logue of Mr. C.'s collection. There are 

 other English collectors, we believe, having 

 collections larger than the Dr.'s. — En. 



