502 LIFE HISTORIES OF NOETH AMEltlCAN BIRDS. 



rendezvous. On their first arrival they keep in flocks for a few weeks, roosting 

 in the willows, and, together with the Red-winged Blackbirds, make a deafening 

 noise, forming a general roost in which all the flocks from the surrounding 

 country join, and so great are their numbers that the trees appear black. In the 

 fall they again gather in large flocks, but betake themselves to the highlands, 

 where they remain until their departure for the south. Oak woods and orchards 

 are now thei'r resorts, whence an occasional visit is made to the fields for food. 

 In the vicinity of Peoria they nest in uplands, where an orchard or a clump 

 of pines or occasionally a soft maple is selected for this purpose; but if one 

 wants to see them in greater abundance he should take a boat and row into the 

 willow swamps, where they nest in large numbers, the nests generally being 

 placed in willow trees, at various distances from the water level, say from 4 

 to 25 feet, and occasionally higher." 



The general habits of the Bronzed Grrackle do not vary greatly from those 

 of the preceding species, and their food is very similar. During the breeding 

 season this consists almost entirely of insects of various kinds, while later in 

 the summer corn is eaten to a considerable extent. In the north, where wild 

 rice is abundant, this, as well as other small seeds, forms a considerable portion 

 of their daily fare. Beechnuts are also eaten by them, and they have been 

 observed catching bees. 



There are two sides to every question, and while there is no doubt that 

 the Bronzed Grackle does some harm to the matured corn crops in certain 

 sections in the fall, due mainly to the enormous numbers of these birds that con- 

 gregate in some localities during their migration, it is equally true that at all 

 other times, especially during the breeding season, they do considerable good, 

 subsisting and feeding their young almost entirely on noxious insects of all 

 kinds, especially cutworms, which destroy a great deal of young com, but 

 whose depredations are often erroneously charged to the birds while searching 

 for them. 



The nesting season is somewhat variable, and ranges from the first week in 

 March to the latter half of June, according to locality, although even at Fort 

 Resolution, near Great Slave Lake, at the extreme northern point of its known 

 range, eggs were taken by Mr. J. Lockhart, of the Hudson Bay Company, as 

 early as May 17, 1863; while at Fort Custer, Montana, they had not even com- 

 menced breeding at that time. I took my first fresh eggs there on May 29, and 

 others as late as June 14, 1885. 



The late Dr. William C. Avery, of Grreensboro, Alabama, found birds inter- 

 mediate between this and the Florida Grackles nesting there on April 25, 1890. 

 Dr. James C. Merrill, United States Army, took fresh sets at Fort Reno, Indian 

 Territory, as late as May 31, 1890, and Dr. Ralph found them laying at Holland 

 Patent, Oneida County, New York, in the latter part of April or the beginning 

 of May. Climate seems to have little influence on the time of nesting. 



Where coniferous trees are obtainable preference seems to be given to them 

 as nesting sites; willows, gaks, maples, elms, sycamores, and cottonwoods are 



