108 



which frequently strike terror into the ranks of Redwings. 

 It is the Long-billed Marsh Wren, however, that is accountable 

 for the greatest devastation. Chapman (1900) comments 

 upon this bird's destructiveness to the eggs of the Least 

 Bittern. In the spring of 1911, I observed it destroying the 

 eggs of a Red-winged Blackbird. While I was standing near 

 a nest containing two eggs, I noticed a pecuUarly acting Marsh 

 Wren about thirty feet away. The vivacious notes so charac- 

 teristic of this species were not uttered. It made its way 

 through the vegetation directly toward the nest until within 

 about ten feet of me, when it began to circle. After I had 

 retired to a distance of about fifteen feet, the Wren went 

 without hesitation straight to the nest, hopped upon the rim, 

 and, bending forward, delivered several sharp blows with its 

 beak upon one of the eggs. It then began to drink the contents 

 much as a bird drinks water. After a few sips, it grasped the 

 eggshell in its beak and flew off into the marsh, where it 

 continued its feast. Upon finishing the contents, it fluttered 

 up to a near-by cat-tail, where, for the first time during the 

 whole period, it burst into song. How general this egg-eating 

 habit of the Marsh Wren may be, is unknown. It seems very 

 strange, however, in view of the friendly terms upon which it 

 seems to live with the Redwing, for nests of both birds are not 

 infrequently found in close proximity. That cases are not 

 isolated is shown by the fact that of 51 nests of the Redwing 

 observed in a limited area, the eggs of 14 were destroyed in 

 this or in a similar way, and it is not at all uncommon to find 

 one or more of the eggs of a nest with neat, circular holes in 

 one side, such as would be made by the small, sharp beak of a 

 Wren. 



The way in which nests are destroyed by the growth of 

 vegetation has already been commented upon (Plate XVII, 

 figs. 1 and 2). 



A list of the parasites found upon the Redwing has been 

 prepared for me by Mr. A. R. Thompson, and is presented 

 herewith : 



Mallophaga: 



Docophorus agelaii Osborn 



