42 



THE AUDUBON BULLETIN 



on June 14th along the public highway in front of our place; 

 one nest was destroyed by the mower, the second nest was built 

 in some poison ivy on a fence post and contained some shells of 

 Dickcissels' eggs and one cowbird egg, and another cowbird egg 

 was lying on the ground. The third nest was also built in poison 

 ivy on a fence post; it was very well concealed and contained 

 four Dickcissel eggs. Most of them built nests again and raised 



some young. On August 3rd, a nest 

 built in a weed under a barbed wire 

 fence was found in which there 

 were three large young, and another 

 pair had built in the top of an ap- 

 ple tree in front of our house. 



A pair of Grasshopper Sparrows 

 raised a brood of three young after 

 the mower had passed over their 

 nest ; the nest was built in a depres- 

 sion, and on a level with the surface 

 of the ground. After we saw one 



photo by Richard churchiii of the birds fly f rom the nest, we 



marked the location, and were careful not to drive over it with 

 the haying tools. 



There were not so many Cliff Swallows here as last year ; 

 only about 75 nests were built, last year there were over 90. 

 On June 23rd, many of the young Swallows were out of their 

 nests and sitting on the telephone wires. On the night of July 

 7th, something broke and enlarged the entrances of about one 

 third of the nests. It probably was a pair of Great Horned Owls 

 that broke the nests, as they were heard hooting on a spruce 

 tree in front of the house during the night, and they also some- 

 times sit on the top of the barn. The owls were probably at- 

 tracted to the nests by the squeaking noise which the young 

 Swallows made during the night. The next day no Swallows 

 were about, and no young could be heard in the nests. Several 

 days afterwards some of the Swallows returned and occupied 

 some of the nests, and later on raised their second brood of 

 young. 



Our Martins raised many young this year, the first ones came 

 out of their house on June 30th, and the last ones August 3rd. 

 They began to flock and sit on our windmill on July 23rd and 

 were all gone by the middle of August. 



The weather was very hot and dry during August and Sep- 

 tember. The first half of October was also very dry, with a 

 few days of cool weather. The first migrant to come from the 

 North was a Solitary Sandpiper on "July 17th, and on the eve- 

 ning of July 19th a Heron was heard squeaking as it was flying 

 southward. On August 15th and 16th a Little Blue Heron stayed 

 in the slough back of our barn. It was very tame, and came into 

 the barnyard several times and alighted on the buildings. 



