BIRDS OF LYNN GROVE. 



Upon an elevation conspicuous for a 

 radius of twenty miles and known as 

 one of the highest points in Illinois, 

 stands Lynn Grove, — one of Nature's 

 beauty spots. A hundred acres'of heavy 

 natural timber so entirely foreign to its 

 immediate surroundings of black roll- 

 ing prairie land, is an unusual sight. 

 Indeed we who dwell near this beautiful 

 grove feel that Nature in a most lavish 

 mood overstepped her natural laws in 

 the creation of this jewel of the prair- 

 ies. 



It stands alone in its majesty, having 

 neither forest nor stream connection 

 with the neighboring timber-belts which 

 stretch away in long blue lines, five 

 miles distant on either side. We find 

 no streams of water gurgHng and mur- 

 muring through its forest aisles and 

 looking upon so noble a gathering of 

 giant trees we wonder at its conception. 



Great sycamores and shell-barks 

 abound along the streams of the neigh- 

 boring forests but both are absent here. 

 In their places are lofty honey-locusts 

 lifting their heads to dizzy heights; — 

 great, spreading walnuts grown to the 

 size of oak trees, while the oaks them- 

 selves, not to be outdone by inferiors, 

 have reached magnificent proportions. 

 An outer wall of thorn-trees, wild crabs 

 and plum thickets surrounds three 

 sides. The humbler growths of sap- 

 lings, with heavy masses of paw-paw 

 and wild gooseberry form an ideal un- 

 dergrowth. At every suggestion of an 

 open spot a lynn (or bass-wood) has 

 sprung toward the sun, and the great 

 number of these trees present has given 

 the grove its name. 



High, and distinctly outlined against 

 the horizon, Lynn Grove is a veritable 

 bird magnet, a mighty gathering place 

 for the hosts of feathered creatures 

 journeying southward in the autumn 

 and returning in the spring. Pierced 

 geographically by the fortieth parallel, 

 the grove nestles between two bird 

 zones. Latitude forty is the northern 

 limit of many southern species as well 

 as the southern border line of many 

 stragglers from the north. Hence we 



may reasonably expect (and are often 

 rewarded with) opportunities in forming 

 new acquaintances in the bird world. 

 Occasionally we are surprised with un- 

 locked for visitors, for Kites have sailed 

 and Bald Eagles have screamed over 

 her mass of inviting tree tops. But 

 who would expect to meet that noble 

 specimen, the Golden Eagle, in an in- 

 land grove of Illinois? Yet a fine seven- 

 foot "Aquilla" left his home among the 

 Rock Mountain crags to spend three 

 happy weeks feeding upon the rabbits 

 of Lynn Grove. It is to be regretted 

 that such a Hfe was taken, but his mag- 

 netic presence excited Nimrodic ambi- 

 tions among the farmer boys and his 

 daring proved his undoing. During 

 May and early June the grove is liter- 

 ally alive with Warblers and an early 

 morning visit in time for the awakening 

 of the chorus, will prove a never-to-be- 

 forgotten one. Twenty species of this 

 attractive family have been observed 

 here on a single day in May. During 

 August, Robins in armies of thousands, 

 Grackles in hordes, and Red-Wings 

 with innumerable kindred spirits, gather 

 and spend several weeks feeding upon 

 the berries, before their departure for 

 the south. 



Living in close proximity for several 

 years and being permitted through the 

 kindness of the owners to enter and ex- 

 plore at will, I have spent many happy 

 and profitable hours taking bird census 

 in Lynn Grove. My visits have usually 

 begun in early spring, for while much 

 is yet to be learned about the winter 

 habits of the birds, our actual winter 

 residents form so small a list, that the 

 uncertainty of meeting them on mid- 

 winter ,days, tends to lessen rather than 

 encourage the enthusiasm attending 

 later visits. Winter lingers long with 

 us in central Illinois and so powerful 

 is her grip that when the first week of 

 March has arrived we see no visible 

 sign of her departure. The clouds are 

 of the same gray hue and the bleak 

 winds moan in the same key that sad- 

 dened the February days and lengthen- 

 ed that shortest month of the year into 



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