46 THE AUDUBON BULLETIN 



ture continually below the freezing point — the weather has moderated and 

 there are evidences that Spring will soon be here. Cardinals, meadowlarks, 

 bluebirds, tufted titmice, Carolina chickadees, our mockingbird, and an 

 occasional robin are singing, and even the juncos now and then emit their 

 simple but pleasing spring trill. The average temperature for the first 10 

 days of February was as follows : Average maximum, 46 degrees, average 

 minimum, 36.1 degrees, average mean 40.75 degrees, showing a remarkably 

 small range for this time of the year. 



Our mocking bird returned to us on October 7th, and will probably 

 remain until the brown thrasher arrives (some four or five weeks hence), 

 in the meantime amusing himself by chasing robins off the premises. When 

 the brown thrasher comes, however, he realizes that he is no longer "boss," 

 and departs for some place unknown to us, probably to some favorite place 

 in the country. This is the third or fourth consecutive winter that he has 

 sojourned with us. 



On January 9th a single crow blackbird (bronzed grackle) visited the 

 feeding place and returned daily until the 14th, when he disappeared. On 

 the same date one of our doves returned. I say one of our doves, because, 

 after alighting on the snow it walked in a direct line to the spot where -our 

 doves were fed last summer. It made only the one visit, having probably 

 been shot by some one of the numerous boys or men who hunt rabbits just 

 outside our place (and some of whom would hunt them inside if they 

 dared.) • 



There are no pink-sided Juncos (J. Montanus) this winter, and there 

 were very few last year. Usually, they are present in the proportion of at 

 least 1 to 10 of the common species. As during previous winters, we have 

 this year only one song sparrow ; and thus far not a single fox sparrow, 

 white-crowned sparrow, nor Harris's sparrow has been seen this winter. 

 Of course these remarks pertain to our home grounds alone, as I have not 

 been able to get outside at all. 



Robert Ridgway. 



Port Byron 



On the afternoon of February 1st, I took a walk to the rapids of the 

 Mississippi at Rapids City, about one and one-half miles below Port 

 Byron, to observe the many Mergansers which are staying there. I observed 

 them from the shore at a distance of about one-fourth of a mile, using 

 a telescope with an object glass two and one-fourth inches in diameter. 

 The species observed were the American, and Red-breasted Merganser, and 

 I estimated their number at about 2,000. While observing the Mergansers, 

 I also saw two Herring Gulls standing on the ice near the edge of the 

 water. 



There are many more Bob-whites, wintering here than on previous years. 

 I am feeding a covey of about ten birds at a brush pile on the north side of 

 our orchard. 



The Cooper's Hawk was seen January 5th and on the afternoon of 

 December 12th, I observed a strange hawk with my eight power field 

 glasses which proved to be a Swainson's Hawk. I had one good view of 

 the hawk when it turned its underparts toward the sun, and I could then see 

 the large rufous patch on the breast and the white belly. Rough-legged 



