276 BIRDS 



tation among other birds (also the farmer) is far from 

 enviable. Although few are their friends and numerous 

 their enemies, they have their virtues. Fond of corn and 

 especially sprouting corn, they are often shot for pulling 

 it up, when they are really feeding upon worms. Crows 

 are loyal to each other, and I know of no other bird (aside 

 from the English sparrow) more capable of holding liis 

 own against all comers. 



Less than seventy years ago the Indian, wolf, prairie 

 chicken, and wild-fowl, together with the crow, were the 

 most prominent features of the Calumet region, in and 

 about where Chicago is now located. With the encroach- 

 ment of civilization, all have vanished save the crow, which 

 continues to nest in considerable numbers within the city 

 limits of Chicago. From October to April they congre- 

 gate at dusk by the hundreds about some favorite roosting 

 place, and at early morn they scatter about the country, 

 apparently in search of adventure as well as of food. 



The nesting season extends from March to June, 

 according to locality. In the Great Lakes region eggs are 

 deposited in April. Nests are placed from twenty-five to 

 seventy feet above the ground, preferably in the crotch 

 of a forest tree. In Dakota, where timber is scarce, during 

 the latter part of May, 1900, I found them nesting only 

 ten feet above the ground. Recently I have located about 

 Chicago several nests which were only fifteen feet above 

 the ground, while other pairs continue housekeeping at 

 an elevation of sixty feet. 



The bulky, substantial nests are constructed of twigs, 

 hay, roots, gTass, and sod, with a lining of finer material 



