62 



North American Birds Eggs. 



[Chalky greenish or bluish white. 



in rows along the high 

 ledges, where the}' sit, as one 

 writer aptly expresses it, like so 

 many black bottles. A few pairs 

 also nest on some of the isolated 

 rocky islets off the Maine coast. 

 During the latter part of May 

 and during June they lay 

 generally four or five greenish 

 white, chalky looking eggs. 

 Size '2.50 x 1.40. Data.— Black 

 Horse Rock, Maine coast, June 

 6, 1893. Four eggs in a nest of 

 seaweed and a few sticks; on a 

 high ledge of rock. Collector, 

 C. A. Reed. 



1 20. Double-crested Cormorant. Phdlurroromx (Ulophus. 



Range. — The Atlantic coast and also in the interior, breeding from Nova Scotia 

 and North Dakota northward. 



This is a slightly smaller bird than rarho, and in the nesting season the white 

 plumes of the latter are replaced by tufts of black and white feathers from above 

 each eye. On the coast they nest the same as carbn and in company with them 

 on rocky islands. In the interior they place their nests on the ground or 

 occasionally in low trees on islands in the lakes. They breed in large colonies, 

 making the nests of sticks and weeds and lay three or four eggs like those of 

 the common Cormorant but averaging shorter. Size 2.80 x 1.40. Data. — Stump 

 Lake, North Dakota, May 81, 1897. Nest of dead weeds on an island. Six eggs. 

 Collector, T. F. Eastgate. 



120a. Florida Cormorant. PJinkirriirfirrLC dWiphug florid/tiius. 



This sub-species is a common breeding bird in the swamps and islands of the 

 Gulf coast and north to South Carolina and southern Illinois. The nests are 

 placed in the mangroves in some of the most impenetrable swamps and are 

 composed of twigs and lined with leaves or moss. They lay three or four chalky 

 bluish white eggs. Size 2.30 x 1.40. Data.— Bird Is., Lake Kissimee, Florida. 

 April 5, 1898. Three eggs. Nest made of weeds and grass, in a willow bush. 



120b. White-crested Cormorant. PhdUirrocorax dibqihiis cincinntus. 



Range.— Northwestern coast of North America, breeding in Alaska, and 

 south to the northern boundary of the United States, breeding both in the 

 interior and on the coast, in the former case generally on the ground or in low 

 trees on swampy islands and in the latter, on the rocky cliffs of the coasts and 

 islands. The nests are built in the same fashion as the other Cormorants, and 

 the three to five eggs are similar. Size 2.45 x 1.40. 



