MUSEUM BULLETIN 



OP THE 



§>iat?n Jaiano Asisflriaitott of Arts m\b BtunttB 



EDITED FOR THE PUBLICATION COMMITTEE 



BY CHARLES LOUIS POLLARD, CURATOR-IN-CHIEF 



No. 60. Published Monthly at New Brighton, N. Y. JULY, 1913 



With several members of' the staff away on vacations, the scouts in 

 camp, and no meetings to announce, there is but little news for the Bulletin 

 to chronicle. The midsummer dullness does not, however, seriously affect 

 the attendance, for not a few visitors from Manhattan and Brooklyn stop 

 for a glimpse at the Museum exhibits before goiug on to South and Midland 

 Beaches, and the loan exhibit of pictures attracts many Staten Islanders 

 who would not usually visit the museum during the summer months. 



In speaking of the picture exhibit it may be of interest to note that 

 the two paintings which have proved the most universally popular with 

 both children and adidts are Leon Dabo's "Evening^" and Miss M. 0. 

 Kobbe's dainty little pastel of "Philip P. Kobbe, 3rd." 



RECENT BIRD OBSERVATIONS. 



Notwithstanding the many forces, such as forest and meadow fires, 

 the cutting of timber, the building of houses and roads, the draining of 

 marshes, etc., which have for years been working hardships upon the natu- 

 ral beauty and wildness of Staten Island, there have recently been discov- 

 ered some rather remarkable and gratifying instances of the nesting among 

 us of birds that have not remained here during the breeding season for a 

 great many years. The explanation may be looked for partly in the fact 

 that gunning, except during the rabbit season in the fall, has very largely 

 been abandoned ; but mention must also be made of private and semi-pri- 

 vate tracts of land, little visited by the public in general, which the birds 

 soon recognize as congenial nesting quarters. The Ocean View Cemetery 

 near Oakwood Heights constitutes such an area and early in July it was 

 noted that two pairs of fish hawks or ospreys were spending the season 

 there, and one nest with two eggs was examined in the top of a dying chest- 

 nut on the fourth of the present month. 



The occurrence of the fish hawks is noteworthy, but there are other 

 nesting records, secured during the current year, which are not less so. 

 Pull account of these cannot of course be printed in this Bulletin, but will 

 likely be forthcoming in some future issue of the Proceedings. Brief men- 

 tion of the most important discoveries may, however, be made. It has long 

 been supposed that we had but one pair of barn owls on the island, but the 

 recent and exceedingly unfortunate killing of a female bird which was 

 brought to the museum discloses the presence of a second pair, as the donor 

 stated that the owl when shot was incubating a clutch of eggs. 



On Decoration Day a pair of marsh harriers was noted near Great 

 Kills, and judging from certain actions of the birds it was thought that 

 they were nesting ; but it was not until the 20 of July, after intermittent 

 searches extending over seven weeks, that the nest, containing 4 half-grown 

 young, was located. 



Less than half a mile from the stronghold of the marsh hawks the old 

 Mill Creek flows into the Great Kills and near its mouth the marsh grass 

 is rank and tall. Here two clapper rails have remained from the first of the 

 season and are under suspicion of having nested. 



Quail are increasing, for an old one with young has been seen, and 

 the familiar whistle of the Bobwhite may be heard in several parts of the 

 island. 



Birds need but little encouragement to become friendly with man, and 

 in view of this the thought occurs that with the complete stopping of shoot- 

 ing and some effort in the direction of establishing shelters and feeding 

 stations, Staten Island could be made a veritable Bird Sanctuary of over 

 seventy square miles in extent. 



H. H. C. 



[Entered as 23-class matter in the P.O. at New Brighton, N. Y., under Act of Congress, July 16.1904 



