336 LIFE HISTOEIES OF IJfOETH AMEEICAN BIRDS. 



cow or horse dung, a stone, a piece of wood, or a clod of soil, and now and then 

 in an old cow or horse track, made while the soil was soft from rain. The nest 

 is usually very hard to locate, as both parents are very watchful. Early in the 

 day the female will usually leave before you are within 50 yards of it, creeping 

 away for some distance, crouched close to the ground, before taking wing, or the 

 male will warn her by flying across the field, jDassing close by the nesting site, 

 when she takes wing also and is then chased by him for some distance. Toward 

 evening they are not so cautious, and very often the nest can be approached 

 within a few feet, and when the female is suddenly surprised in this maimer she 

 will fly only a few yards, alight, and begin pecking the ground as unconcernedly 

 as if her nest were not within a mile. In fact, the only anxiety I have ever seen 

 these birds show when their nests contained eggs was by flying overhead while 

 an intruder was close to it, but they never alight near it themselves. How- 

 ever, when the nest contains young they act quite differently and become greatly 

 agitated, frequently uttering an alarm note, something like 'tseet, tseet,' hovering 

 overhead or flying across the field, alighting occasionally for a few seconds on a 

 fence post, only to take wing again the next minute, and uttering their alarm 

 note constantly. 



"The early nests are built very compactly and are warmly lined. First a 

 circular hole is scratched in the ground, just deep enough so that the upper rim 

 of the nest will be flush with the surface. The outer walls are composed of soft 

 dead grass, and the inside is lined with thistle down and dry mullein leaves ( Ver- 

 bascum), picked into small pieces, wherever they can be obtained, the woolly 

 nature of these leaves making a warm and comfortable lining; but where these 

 are not to be had, and where railroads are near by, cotton waste is often sub- 

 stituted. An occasional feather and the blossoms of the mayweed (Maruta) are 

 also used now and then. Later in the season, when the weather is warmer, 

 less attention is paid to the lining of the- nest. 



"After the first brood is hatched and the young are able to leave the nest, 

 they are always attended by the male, who keeps them together and guards 

 them, while the female is busily engaged incubating a second clutch of eggs. 

 The weather during the latter part of March is often very pleasant and warm, 

 only to be followed by a heavy fall of snow about April 1, when a good many 

 unfinished nests and incomplete sets of eggs are snowed under and deserted 

 by the owners; in fact, only a few birds will cling to their nests under such 

 circumstances, as I have found many abandoned ones in diff'erent seasons. 

 During the latter part of April and through the summer season the birds seem 

 to desert the meadows and pastures, and are then more frequently found in 

 potato and cabbage fields, I suppose on account of the growth of the grass, as 

 they prefer bare ground to nest on." 



While social birds at all other times, during the breeding season the Prairie 

 Homed Larks are rarely seen in flocks, each pair keeping to themselves. During 

 the mating and breeding season the male indulges in frequent bursts of song, 

 ascending into the air very much like the European Skylark, but its vocal 



