JOURNAL OP MAINE ORNITHOLOGICAL SOCIETY. 



59 



elevation of dried leaves. This 

 proves to be an Ovenbird's (Sierurus 

 anricapillus) nest. Neatly arched 

 over the top and completely hiding 

 the eggs from our view. We raise the 

 lid and behold five handsome eggs of 

 white, dotted with large brown spots. 

 The owner up in the tree, is calling 

 Teacher, Teacher, Teacher! At first, 

 utttered low and sounding quite dis- 

 tant, yet increasing in volume till we 

 behold the singer directly over our 

 heads. It is getting late, consulting 

 our time pieces, we find it is long past 

 lunch time; and we now realize we 

 have developed a good appetite. We 

 have been so carried away with the 

 delightful surroundings that we had 

 quite forgotten our lunch baskets. 



So, repairing to a cool spring, near 

 the bank of the stream and in the 

 edge of the woods, we make a drink- 

 ing cup of white birch bark, peeled 

 off with a pocket knife. We sit down 

 on a fallen log and enjoy our lunch. 

 Busily discussing our delightful ex- 

 periences between the bites of our 

 cold sandwitches, occasionally slaking 

 our thirst with the cool springwater 

 which bubbles from out the ground 

 near our feet. 



A pair of Canada Nu thatches (Sitta 

 canadensis) can be heard across on 

 the other bank. They, no doubt, are 

 nesting in one of the many dead stubs 

 and their young have kept them busy 

 all the morning securing food for 

 them. We onw and then catch 

 sight of a pair of Yellow-Bellied 

 Woodpeckers (Spyrapicus varius) who 

 have dug through the hard outer part 

 of some dead poplar into the decayed 

 heart, and have deposited their four 

 pearly white eggs on the chips at the 

 bottom of the cavity. We have see:- 

 this pair before, for they were nest- 

 ing in a Woodpecker colony near by, 

 last year, (See Journal Vol. Ill, Apr. 

 P. 27). The pair of Hairy Woodpeck- 

 ers (Dryobates vilosus) "mentioned in 



the above article, are here, too, feed- 

 ing their young in the same excava- 

 tion in the top of a tall dead poplar. 

 A Hummingbird (Trochibus colubris) 

 is darting among the wild flowers and 

 the occasional song of the North Par- 

 parula Warbler (Compsothlyis ameri- 

 usnear) can be heard among the 

 tall tree tops. 



After finishing our lunch, we cross 

 the meadow to the banks of the 

 stream, and find a pair of Catbirds 

 (Galeoscoptes carolinensis) are scold- 

 ing us for intruding upon them. Their 

 nest is carefully concealed among the 

 thick chokecherry bushes that line 

 the banks of the stream. Yellow 

 Warblers (Dendroica aestiva) are 

 common along the banks and are 

 nesting in the low bushes there. We 

 now leave the river and pass on 

 across the old fields toward the high- 

 er hills, to the westward. The Grass- 

 finch (Poocaetes grarnineus) and Sa- 

 vanna Sparrows (Amodramus sand- 

 wichensis savanna) are seen scattered 

 about in the dry grass. As we climb 

 the hills through a sugar maple or- 

 chard, we find a pair of Phoebes (Say- 

 ornis phoebe) have a nest under the 

 eaves of an old sugar camp. The 

 Wood Pewee's (Contopus virens) song 

 is heard in this grove. Here, too, the 

 Flicker and Bluebird are nesting in the 

 hollow sl^ubs. A Hermit Thrush (Tur- 

 dus aonalaschkae pallasii) is running 

 along the ground over the dry leaves, 

 stopping occasionally to stare at us 

 with large wondering eyes. We pass 

 up to the upland field, where the rol- 

 licking song of the Bobolink (Dolinchi- 

 vorous oryzivorous) is heard. Other 

 songs greet our ears on every side, 

 and as we reach the farm house where 

 we are spending our short vacation, 

 we realize we have taken a long 

 tramp, and are tired. Yet, we have 

 had a very enjoyable day, and feel 

 well repaid for the long tramp, since 

 it has taken us among our feathered 



