Aprii, 12, 1883.] 



FOREST AND 7 STREAM. 



205 



as well as other birds, Have a varied and expressive language. 

 When suddenly alarmed their cries are very discordant, Bui 

 when undisturbed upon their nests a soft, COOlOg cry, ""I at 

 all unpleasant to the car, is sometimes uttered, especially at 

 the approach of a mate. On a Bra) November day, when 

 the air is clouded and chilly, and the earth brown and cheer- 

 less, the cries of the trolls have a dismal sound, yet. 1 have 

 often been assured of fair weather by such cries; and [ have 

 felt oppressed by their ominous silence before an approach- 

 ing storm. But bow exasperating are their cries of warning 

 when one is attempting to approach a Dock of goose or clacks 

 for a shot. Not content, with betaking themselves out of 

 danger, the gulls when once fully alarmed will circle about 

 in the air uttering repeated cries that betoken danger, and as 

 such arc recognized by fowl other than of their own species 

 The ducks and geese tin l Erequentthe same haunts as the 

 gulls so well understand the language of the latter that 

 no attention will be paid to any cries except those of 

 warning. 



The silvery gulls, but no other species of gulls, are to be 

 found on the coast of Maine throughout the entire year. 

 Great number., migrate hence in autumn, but the places of 

 many of them are 'filled by others coming from more north- 

 ern breeding places. At times, when extremelveold weather 

 cover, the shores and lists with ice, the trulls "ail leave, but 

 return so soon as the ice is gone and an abundance of food 

 can again be obtained. Although the gulls are the scaven- 

 gers of the sea and not fastidious about their food, they sub- 

 sist chiefly upon shelltlsh and small fishes, and fish weirs are 

 sometime frequented by them for the young herrings, etc., 

 there to be found. I have seen these g'nlls perched upon the 

 stakes of a fish weir, bid never upon trees, except during 

 the summer at their breeding places, where the woods will 

 be white with them. But at no other time, even in the same 

 localities, are they accustomed to alight upon trees. 



During the summer the shellfish "known as "sea urchin" 

 forms a staple article of food for them, and the gulls can ex- 

 tract, this fish without breaking its shell. Not so with clams 

 and mussels, however. These are taken up in the air bythe 

 gulls and dropped upon the beach or rocks for the purpose 

 of breaking the shells. Although these shellfish form the 

 common food of the birds, the gulls never swallow them 

 with the shells whale, as do ducks'of various species. 



There is a popular fallacy that gulls and vultures are 

 gifted with the sense of smell to a wonderful degree, and 

 can scent their food far away. It is a fact, however, that 

 the sense of smell is barely developed at all with birds. Em. 

 the gulls have very keen vision, and when one espies food 

 aud circles in the air over it, the motions of that bird betray 

 the fact to either of its species far away. These hasten on 

 wing to the spot, and by their movements show to gulls 

 still more remote that some prey has been discovered. A 

 lot of offal thrown from a vessel at sea will immediately 

 attract the gulls near by, and perhaps but one or two birds 

 will at first"" be seen. Yet soon others will make their ap- 

 pearance, one after another, coming from all directions; 

 until a host is assembled. 



Gulls may often be decoyed by various methods. One of 

 the most simple and successful that 1 have tried, is by means 

 of a pair of gull's wings. These should be cut from the bird 

 close to the body, aud placed with their upper edges to- 

 gether. Then grasping them about the joints with one hand, 

 they can be made to extend and close by alternately clench- 

 ing the hand and partially relaxing the grasp. The operator 

 should be well hid from view and only the wings exposed. 

 The motiou will attract the attention of a gull from quite a 

 distance, and by its resemblance to a gull hovering over its 

 prey, frequently decoy I he bird sufficiently near for a killing 

 shot. 



373. King-billed Gull — Lotus zonorhynchus Aud. ; Lams 

 iklawmiim Bidg. 609, Os. 773. — Common during migra- 

 tions. None breed here, 



374. Kitliwake Gull— Onus tridarlylus Aud.; Rissa tri- 

 daetyla Bidg. 658, Cs. 782.— Common along the coast during 

 migrations and in winter. None breed here. 



2ir». Laughing QM—fjtrii* utrirtlla Aud., Bidg. . 

 Chivirorijjhulus o.tn'cilla Cs. 786. — Not common. Occasion- 

 ally it small community is found breeding on the coast of 

 Maine, and apparently this has occurred with some regu- 

 larity within the last few years. The apeoias occurs here as 

 a slimmer visitant from' the South. It has ocessionally 

 bred in Casco Bay, and also as far east of the bay of Fundy. 

 Mr, Boardman reported them as "very plenty" in the sum- 

 mer of 1879 in the latter region. 



376. Bonaparte's Gull— Lows hunapurtei Aud.; Larus 

 Philadelphia Bidg. 675; 'Unit eoeephn lit s Philadelphia Cs. 788. 

 — Abundant during migrations, and a few immature birds 

 remain .along our eastern coast in summer. None of this 

 species breed here. They arrive from the South late in May, 

 and sometime acquire the perfect plumage of the breeding 

 sea-on ere passing further north. I have seen mature bird's 

 of this species in'Oaseo Bay as late as June 11, aud observed 

 adult birds on the eastern coast of Maine upon August 8 of 



flying, by the black outer edge of the wing. Otherwise it 



resembles the common Bonaparte's gull when on the wing. 



STERNINJE : TEENS. 



378. Gull-billed Tern— sterna utuihWi And., Bidg. G79, 



Cs. 793.— Not common. Of irregular occurrence along the 

 coast, Ilia ve shot terns of this species at, various times in 

 Maine, where it appears to be of rather rare occurrence, and 

 the species is nowhere abundant upon the Atlantic coast of 

 America. A flock numbering several dozens visited the 

 marshes at Scarboro in September. 1868. 1 shot three speci- 

 mens from this flock and could have easily killed many 

 more. Mr. Boardman reports a single specimen taken neat 

 Grand Meuan Island in August, 1879. I procured an adult 

 specimen at Scarboro, Me.", May 21, 1881, but saw none 

 other of the species at that time. 



379. Caspian Tern — Skrna easpia Rh\g. 680, Cs. 793. — 

 Bare. This tern is here named upon the authority of Mr. 

 Boardman, who reports its occurrence upon our coast. 

 Specimens have been procured by him at the mouth of the 

 St. Croix Biver so recently as the autumn of 1877. 



280. Wilson's Tern, "Common Tern — Sterna hiruiah 

 Ami., Cs. 797; Sterna /lueiaUlis Bidg. 680.— Abundant in 

 summer. Breeds commonly along the coast. All the terns 

 are locally known in Maine' as "mackerel gulls." 



281. Arctic Tern.— Slerna arctica Aud.; Sterna maerura 

 Bidg. 687, Cs, 799.— Abundant in summer. Breeds com- 

 mouly along the coast. Although associating freely with 

 the Wilson's tern, these two species do not intermingle their 

 nests, ah hough sometime communities of each are found 

 breeding upon one small island. In such instances each 

 species shows as much apparent concern about an intrusion 

 upon the domains of their neighbors as upon their own. 

 For a perfect .identification of the eggs the collector should 

 observe the birds upon them. The "variety Portia ndiea," 

 which has black bill and feet, is of not uncommon occur- 

 rence here. 



383. Dougall's Tern, Boseate Tern — Sterna dougalU 

 Aud.; Bidg. 688; Cs. 800.— Not common. Although abun- 

 dant along the coast of New England further south, but 

 few terns of this species visit Maine, and none are known 

 to breed here. 



283. Least Tern— Sterna minnta Aud. ; Sterna anlillarum 

 Bidg. 690; SUma sup, rriliaris antiilarum Cs. 801. A rare 

 straggler from the south. Of irregular occurrence only. 



284. Sooty Tern— Sterna fuliyiuusa Aud., Ridg. 691, 

 Cs. 804. — Accidental; a single specimen reported by Mr. 

 Buthven Deanc (in Bull. Nutt, Orn. Club, Jan., 1880), as 

 obtained by Mr. Horace R. True in the town of Parkmau, 

 Piscataquis county, Maine, Octobers, 1878. This bird was 

 "picked up in the road and died next day. ' 



285. Black Tern— Sterna ni'/ra Aud. ;' HydrochelhPm Inri- 

 funnis si.irmnmmsis Bidg. 693; Ilydeorhdielon lariformis 



Cs. 806. — Bare. Of irregular occurrence along the coast, 

 usually in autumn. I shot a specimen at Scarboro, Aug. 18, 

 1865. Other specimens have been shot there at various 

 times. The species were taken at Scarboro in June, 1878, 

 and in September ot the same year. In the autumn of 1879 

 Mr Boardman obtained three adults from the Bay of Fundy, 

 from Grand Menau Island. In Bull. N. O. Club. July, 

 188.2. two specimens are recorded (by Nathan Clifford 

 Brown) for Maine, taken in the autumn of 1881, one at Scar- 

 boro, and one at Well's Beach. 



286. Black Skimmer— Rhynchnps ntyra Aud., Bidg. 050, 

 Cs. 809. — Rare. Of occasional occurrence only, and no re- 

 cord of its appearance so far north as Maine previous to 

 .1879. In the early autumn of that year a number were shot 

 on our coast. Mr. Ira S. Shalis, of Wells, shot one of two 

 seen at a creek of Well's Bay, Aug. 28, 1879. Mr. Board- 

 man reports seven specimens shot in the. Bay of Fundy. 

 where many were seen during the autumn of the same year. 

 Mr. Barry Merrill informs me of one that was shot" by a 

 fisherman' near Martiuicus Island, Me., in the summer of 

 1881, and the specimen was sent to Bangor. 



[TO BE COSCIiUDED.] 



arc known to breed here, nor upoi 

 p of islands in the Bay of 



the same year. Yet 



any of the Grand Men 



Fundy. The southward migration extends throughout the 

 autumn, and small flocks of these gulls tarry not uncommonly 

 on our coast until December, 



The first arrivals from the breeding places in August 

 usually consist of a few male biids, which remain here aud 

 pass through the summer moult. The species becomes more 

 abundant here in October aud November, 



These small gulls are quire unwary, and may he easily 

 approached upon the water by a boat," or dee, .mo by waving 

 a white handkerchief. They are gregarious at all seasons, 

 and small flocks are to be seen about our harbors and estu- 

 aries industriously catching smelts during November. The 

 fish are procured by the birds flying over the water at s 

 slight elevation, and suddenly pouncing upon their prey 

 They do not plunge into the water, however, in the manner 

 of the terns. 



277. Sabine's Gull — Larus seilnni Aud.; Xema suhinH 

 Bidg. oil. Cs. 790.— Very rare. While watching som< 

 Bonaparte's gulls near Bluff Island, Scarboro, Me., Slav 31 

 1877, I observed a gull of similar size and mode of flight 

 |P whose outer primary wing feathers appeared to be black. I 

 Succeeded in decoying this bird near enough to my boat fo 

 a shot, and secured the rare specimen. It was an adult 

 female Sabine's gulf, having the perfect plumage of the 

 breeding Season. 



In May, 1878, my friend, George A. Boardman, Esq., 

 procured a fine specimen from Indian Island, near East- 

 port, Me., an adult very nearly in perfect plumage. 



The home of this beautiful species is in the far North, and 

 the capture of but a very few specimens within the limits of 

 the United States has been publicly recorded. Sabine's gull 

 may he distinguished from other small gulls, even when 



SNAKE NOTES. 



I AM reminded by your notes in Forest and Stream, for 

 April 5, of a large black snake, which I killed near 

 Farmington, Conn. 1 was driving with a lady and saw his 

 snakeship cross the road just in front of us, his head nearly 

 reaching one side of the narrow mountain roadway befor" 

 his tail reached the other. The horse was a quiet one, sc, 

 my companion assenting, 1 armed myself with a stone and 

 followed the snake into the bushes, where I was fortunate 

 enough to give him a mortal hurt. I had no means of meas- 

 uring him but with my whip, which was not so long as he 

 was, but one length and the lap, which I carefully measured 

 on reaching home, made him seven feet and eight inches 

 long. 1 think he. must have been fully eight feet, as tli 

 contraction of his muscles prevented him from lying per- 

 fectly straight when I measured him. He was the largest 

 native New England snake 1 ever saw, and as a constrictor 

 would have been a formidable antagonist. 



This reminds me of the speed of the. black snake. I was 

 once passing through some open woods in the same vicinity 

 when I came upon a large and beautiful specimen. I should 

 say that he was some six feet long and of a glistening blue- 

 black. He at once took to flight and I after him. 1 was a 

 fairly good runner then, but he went at least twice as fast 

 as I could, and soon disappeared. There is a tradition in 

 that region of a snake called a "racer." I know it, is laughed 

 at by naturalists, but I have never been able to rid myself of 

 the idea that this was something more than the ordinary 

 black snake of the Northern States". 



Charles Ledtard Norton. 

 Pnn.ADEL.praA, April 6. 



%nn\t jgng m\d fittt(. 



GAirE RESORTS. -117- ore „.hwiis glnd to receive for pub- 

 lication such notes of desirable (/utile resorts as may be of help 

 to the readers of Four's r am) Htkkam. Wilt not our corre- 

 spondents furor us with such ael.eic.ei' 



DEER HUNTING IN THE ADIRONDACK^. 



BV JOS. W. SllUUTER. 



chapte'r t.— routes. 



ONE prominent trait of the true sportsman is the habit of 

 "fighting his battles o'er again." This habit is acquired 

 not from a love of boasting or desire for notoriety, but from 

 desire that all mankind may be sharers in the 

 pleasures which are so dear to him. 



This desire, coupled with a wish to oblige my sportsmen 

 friends who have asked for a history of our two last sporting 

 trips, leads me to again attempt, to picture the sport of 

 "deer hunting in the Adimndacks." However, as these 

 bunts are necessarily very much alike-, I prefer to avoid the 

 risk of wearying the reader with repetitious and simply give 

 such data of our trips as in my judgment may prove of in- 

 terest, supplemented by a description of the methods com- 

 monly employed in hunting this noble game which may in- 

 terest those who contemplate enjoying the spoi I: at some 

 time in the future. 



Oui party for the fall of '81 consisted of Perry Boss and 

 Edward Grady, of Gansevoort; George Edmonds, of Battle 



vsclf, with "iVIincy" Sprott as our 

 ;ood fellows all. We camped three 

 ng on Moose Biver. Hamilton county, 

 killed twelve deer, beside a 

 ; which I would mention BBV- 

 '. spruce grouse or "Canada 

 Mlitndc. A short time before 

 1 by the arrival of Messrs. 



Creek, Mich., and 

 dief de cuisine, royal 

 weeks at Indian Clei 

 N T . Y. During this ti 

 quantity of other game, 



specimens of the 

 partridge," a rara acts i 

 party wa 



Herbert and Wesley Sprott and John Washburn, of Forts 

 ville. 



The personnel of our party last fall was Samuel Hewitt 

 and Benajah Allen, of Stillwater; John Chase, of Wilton; 

 George Edmonds, of Battle Creek, Mich,, and myself. The 

 scene of our operations was located on Cedar" River, our 

 "old hunting ground," Although deer are not as plenty 

 here as "further in" on Moose Biver, still there are enough 

 for good sport. Our party secured five, three of which 

 were magnificent specimens. We were very kindly taken in 

 and cared for by "Rich." Potter, whose place is located on 

 the Cedar five miles above Cedar River Hotel. I would say 

 in passing to those, who desire to hunt this locality, or Moose 

 Biver. you cannot do better than to place yourself under the 

 guidance of Mr. Potter. He is not only an expert hunter, 

 but is also an old hotel keeper and knows the wants of his 

 patrons, and has both the ability aud desire to supply them at. 

 reasonable prices. His house is huge and comfortable, and 

 his outfit: of dogs, canoes and other impedimenta will be 

 complete for next season's sport. And lastly, but not least, 

 his wife is not only au intelligent lady, but is also an excel- 

 lent cook, a fact, to be appreciated after starving at some of 

 the resorts for sportsmen in that vicinity. 



Moose Biver, the paradise of the deer-slayer, is reached 

 via Adirondack Railroad to North Creek, thence by stage to 

 Cedar Biver, thence by private conveyance eighteen miles 

 up the Cedar, three miles across the divide to Moose Lake, 

 and nine miles down Moose Biver to the "Indian clearing," 

 which is titty miles distant from North Creek. The road, 1 

 presume it is called a road through courtesy, for the last, fif- 

 teen miles of the route is formed "by simply" cutting the trees 

 and hauling the logs from the line of travel. Rooks, roots 

 of trees, and mud holes, alternate with distressing frequency. 

 "Variety is the spice of life" is a trite saving, but when it 

 consists in being bounced about upon the. "soft" side of the 

 axle of a lumber wagon that is continually thumping over 

 "pebbles," slightly larger than the one with which "David 

 slew Goliah, or climbing over huge rocks, veritable boulders, 

 only to be soused in 

 ing'that that sort of 

 the world. But 



hunting ground: 

 "Indian Cleat 

 mile in breadth, 

 berry brush, wl 

 season. It pc 



mud hole beyond, one gets to think- 

 spice" is not (be most desirable thing 

 7 de.sperandurii.it leads to the "happy 



Sfrixg in Massachusetts.— Newton, Mass., March 39.— 

 Spring at last seems to be near us, for already we have 

 noticed the return of our feathered friends froni'lhc South. 

 On Sunday, February 18, while driving alone' beside a 

 meadow, we saw the first robin, aud the poor fellow seemed 

 to be badly used up with the ice aud snow on the ground, aud 

 the raw, cutting wind. Since then I have seen more, and 

 bluebirds also. The first purple grackle of the season was 

 noticed on Tuesday, the 27th inst. It has been a very hard 

 winter, and w T e fear that the quail have suffered, as we have 

 not heard of any being seen since December. — Tom Ally. 



Snow Buntings.— Ferrisbuigh, Vt., March 31.— Tell "J. 

 L. D." that it is neither uncommon nor common to see snow 

 bindings alight in trees here. I have often seen them so 

 perched.— A WA1IS008E. 



ug" is about three miles in extent by one 

 It is almost entirely covered with hu'ckle- 

 ch yield large quantities of berries in their 

 sses an interest from the fact that there is 

 a legend respecting it to the fact that it was made by the 

 Iroquois Indians prior to the French and Indian war. The 

 most probable theory of its existence is that it resulted from 

 one of the tremendous forest fires which occasionally sweep 

 over such wilderness regions. But, whatever may have 

 been the cause of its existence, it certainly requires but little 



effort of tie Imagination, as one floats over ti 



depths of the "upper" or "lower stillwater" ant 

 the weird hooting of the owl, the croak of the ra 

 splashing of trout, to picture this as once one of tf: 

 stamping-grounds of the scalp-lifters, or in f 



i r Icy- 

 us to 

 i- the 

 orite 

 i t lie 



traditional birch-bark canoe and painted warrior, plumed 

 with eagles' feathers, "gliding down the winding stream. ' 



Moose Biver, or rather the south branch of Moose Biver, 

 of which I am writing, is the outlet of Moose Lake, a beau- 

 tiful sheet of water embosomed in the primeval forest and 

 surrounded by mountains, which stand like grim sentinels 

 jealously guarding the gem which mirrors their rugged 

 grandeur. The river flows westward in a succession of 

 rapids aud stillwater. The most important of the latter are 

 termed the "upper" and the "lower," each being about one 

 and one-half miles in extent. The upper stilhvater, which 

 is opposite of Indian Clearing, has at its lower extremity au 



StillW 



i Wakely to 



i'd by the 

 beautiful 



id iit this 



apal tril:'.r 



artificial dam, built by Wi 



iug operations. The lowe 



low tin' upper, and is prono 



entitled to respect "the mi 



water ill the Aditondaelis,' 



cur. At its lower extrei 



called Rock Dam. The pri: 



from Moose Lake to this point are; Fron: 



Run, five miles below" Moose Lake; Sunlit 



Indian Clearing, and Bed Biver, at Bock Dai 



south, Otter Creek, opposite Indian Clearint 



Biver, at the upper end of lower stillwater. 



There are as yet .but limited facilities for enjoying sport 

 at this point on the Moose. The well-known guide "Lige" 

 Camp is the proprietor of a well-appointed house for the 

 accommodation of sportsmen, which is pleasantly located 

 at Moose Lake. 



After testiughis hospitality, I can aay his house is neat 



acilitatelumber- 

 mt one mile be- 



lose opinions are 



tcb of running 



ion 1 fully con- 



I dam of rocks, 



of Moose Biver 



he north. Silver 



sr stream at 



l. From the 



and Indian 



