THE AUDUBON BULLETIN yj 



After this came the exciting part — the awarding of the prizes. Each 

 child came back for his own bird-house saying, "I want to put it up 

 early so the birds will build in it; next year I shall try again and see if 

 I can build a better house." — Florence R. King, 



Bird Club, Sec'y, Carbondale, 111. 



Notes From Port Byron 



AFTER an absence of three years, the yellow-breasted chat returned 

 . again to this locality, and was heard singing, the first time on 

 June 10, the last time on August 19. No Bell 's vireo was seen or heard 

 here this year. 



In my bird notes which were published in last year's Fall Bulletin, 

 I told about the cliff swallow nests being ruined by some bird, and 

 blamed the great horned owls. Last spring the mystery was solved when 

 we caught a red-headed woodpecker in the act of pecking holes in the 

 nests. The red-heads are quite a nuisance here but as there are many 

 acorns this year, many of them will remain over winter. 



I have a few late dates of "last seen or heard" for this year. A rose- 

 breasted grosbeak was singing in the garden on the morning of Septem- 

 ber 30. A whip-poor-will was heard calling on the evening of September 

 27, and the same evening a vesper sparrow was heard singing. A ruby- 

 throated humming bird was seen for the last time September 23. A 

 cat bird was heard singing the whisper song on the morning of October 9. 

 A red-eyed or Philadephia vireo was heard singing October 14. 



Migratory birds first seen or heard this fall by the writer, were as 

 follows: 



Solitary sandpiper, August 5 Fox sparrow, September 7 



Marsh hawk, August 17 Henslow's sparrow, September 14 



Sora rail, August 18 Hermit thrush, September 14 



Night hawk, August 16 Ruby-crowned kinglet, September 14 



Blue heron, August 24 White-throated sparrow, September 22 



Yellow-bellied sapsucker, September 1 Myrtle warbler, September 26 



Winter wren, September 2 Rough-legged hawk, September 30 



Blue-headed vireo, September 3 Brown creeper, September 30 

 Slate-colored j unco, September 5 



J. J. SCHAFER. 



The Bronzed Grackles' Frolic 



THE largest flock of grackles I ever saw alighted on my lawn to 

 enjoy a bath under a fine-sprayed sprinkler then in action. There 

 must have been between sixty and seventy birds in the flock. They 

 seemed perfectly happy and frolicsome, running here and there, jumping 

 up a few feet, having mock battles, and never still for a moment. 



