150 



THE OOLOGIST. 



Notes from Alachua Co., Florida. 



The following from my note-book, are 

 some of the species I have found breeding 

 here during the first two months of the 

 breeding season, this year (1888). 



The first nest found Feb. 23, was a Log- 

 gerhead Shrike containing four fresh eggs. 

 It was situated in an orange tree eight feet 

 up. 



Feb. 9, Loggerhead nest situated in a 

 live oak tree, twelve feet up; five fresh 

 eggs. 



March 7, Loggerhead, five fresh eggs. 



March 12, Learning of a native that he 

 had found a Black Vulture's nest the week 

 before, containing two eggs, I determined 

 to obtain them. A ten mile ride and a 

 hard hunt revealed two young about four 

 days old. They were not white like the 

 young Buzzards, but black. The nest was 

 on the bare ground by a log in the swampy 

 wood. 



March 24. Loggerhead, three nests of 

 five and one nest of six ; all fresh. 



March 28. Great White Heron, four sets 

 of three each; incubation far advanced. 

 Nest composed of sticks and twigs laid 

 loosely together in bush over water. t 



March 29. Turkey Buzzard, two fresh 

 eggs : nest in a hollow stump. 



March 30. Fla. Screech Owl, two fresh 

 eggs (the usual number of eggs laid by this 

 species here is three) ; nest in an old Flicker's 

 hole, ten feet up. Also. Brown-headed 

 Nuthatch, two fresh eggs same date. 



March 31. Brown-headed Nuthatch, four 

 slightly incubated eggs; nest in a dead pine 

 snag, six leet up. It was composed of bits 

 of wool mixed in with little chips of rotten 

 wood and pine seeds. 



April 2. Fla. Screech Owl, incubation 

 advanced; nest in an old Woodpecker's nest, 

 ten feet up . 



April 4. Screecher, two fresh eggs. 

 Same date, four fresh Sparrow Hawk eggs ; 

 both nests in an old Flicker's nest. 



April 5. Brown-headed Nuthatch, three 

 fresh eggs. 



April 9. Sparrow Hawk, four fresh eggs. 



April 11, Brownrheaded Nuthatch, four 



fresh eggs. 



April 12. Sparrow Hawk, four fresh 

 eggs; nest in natural cavity of a pine stub, 

 ten feet high ; eggs laid on rotten wood at 

 bottom of cavity. 



April 16. Am. Sparrow Hawk, one set of 

 four and one of five, badly incubated eggs. 

 Also, Bluebird, five fresh eggs. 



April 19. Sreech Owl, two fresh eggs. 

 Sparrow Hawk, four fresh eggs; and Mock- 

 ingbird, three fresh eggs. 



April 20. Brown -headed Nuthatch, three 

 fresh eggs; "Yellow Hammer," five fresh 

 eggs. 



April 24. Sparrow Hawk, two sets of 

 four fresh eggs ; Mockingbird, two sets of 

 four; Black-crowned Night Heron, four 

 badly incubated eggs. 



April 25. American Egret, three fresh 

 eggs; nest composed of sticks and twigs 

 placed in a bush oyer water ; Green Heron, 

 three fresh eggs; Purple Martin, twenty 

 incubated eggs, four sets. 



April 30. Boat-tailed Grackle, several 

 sets of three, incubation fresh ; nests placed 

 in thick bushes near water. 



T. G. P., Archer, Fla. 



A Plea for the English Sparrow. 



Having seen several articles in the Oolo- 

 gist about the English Sparrow, and all in 

 favor of extermination on account of the 

 damage done to the farmers' crops. I send 

 you the follow ng ' 'plea for the Sparrow, ' ' 

 which I have clipped from one of our local 

 paper, thinking that it might be interest- 

 ing to some of the readers of the Oologist. 

 The farmers around here make no com- 

 plaint against the Sparrow, and the only 

 thing that can be said against them here is 

 that they drive all the other birds away and 

 destroy the eggs and nests : 



C. S. H. Norristown, Pa. 



Even the kind-hearted John Burroughs 

 has given a reluctant assent to the popular 

 verdict against the English Sparrow. But 

 a popular outcry is not always well founded. 

 The noisy, pugnacious, often greedy little 

 bird has such hosts of enemies that it is 

 only manly to see if popular prejudice is 



