36 



Bulletin of the Michigan Ornithological Club. 



Chandler's Marsh. 



(Photo by T. L. Hankinsom) 



Two Days of Marsh Collecting. 



LEON J. COLE. 



The frequent glowing* reports that I 

 received from Mr. T. L. Han kin son 

 of his success collecting, had their 

 inevitable effect upon me, and the night 

 of Friday, May 28, 1897, found me at the 

 Agricultural College near Lansing. We 

 laid our plans for an early start the next 

 morning, but they were rudely upset when 

 Mr. Hankinson found that he would have 

 to take an examination. This was a sad 

 disappointment, but it was a decree of 

 fate — and the faculty — so there was no 

 help for it. We hacl our lunch put up, 

 however, and were prepared to go without 

 delay when the time came. 



About noon we were off at last, and taking 

 the road leading directly north, we walked 

 briskly for about two miles, and came out in 

 full view of Chandler's marsh. For two 

 miles or so straight ahead of us, the road 

 looked like a slender thread dividing the big 

 marsh into two parts, that on the right 

 hand being considerably the larger. The 

 longer axis lies from northeast to south- 

 west. The place, as a whole, is a level 

 tract of land, covered with water for the 

 most part at this season of the year; and 

 the vegetation is low, so that a good view 



of the whole expanse is had from almost 

 any elevated point around. In that por- 

 tion which is slightly drier,- on the south 

 side and near the road, the ground has 

 been cultivated at some time, but was now 

 covered by rank swamp grass and sedges, 

 and was all flooded by a few inches of 

 water, except a knoll now and then that 

 rose a little above the surrounding level. 

 There are other parts a good deal the 

 same, but w T hich have never been disturbed 

 by the plow. Here and there, and espe- 

 cially along the north side, where there is a 

 ditch, are patches of willows eight to ten 

 feet high. Occasionally a few straggling 

 poplars attain a considerable height, and 

 in one or two places there is quite a growth 

 of them of from five to six feet. 



In the more open parts the walking is 

 comparatively good, although soft, but in 

 the bushier places where are often large 

 pools surrounded by cat-tails, it is made 

 very uncertain by the inequality of the 

 * surface, and the large amount of brush- 

 wood under foot. 1 have been through 

 here when there was but very little water, 

 and it was very difficult travelling then, so 

 imagine what it is with the general leA^el 

 covered by a foot or two of water — you 

 are going very nicely when, unexpectedly 

 and without warning, you step into a hole 



