42 



Bulletin of the Michigan Ornithological Club. 



Vol. IV, No. 1. November, 1897. 



The only ornithological item in this issue is one by 

 Jas. J. Carroll, entitled "Vultures." The main portion 

 of this article is a description of thirteen nests of the 

 Black Vulture. 



Vol. IV, No. 2. December, 1897. 



The principal bird ai tides in this number are, "The 

 Prairie Horned Lark in Nebraska," by J. E. Ludwick, 

 and "Two New Zealand Parrots," by J. Manghan. 



W. E. M. 



The Oologist. Frank H. Lattin, Albion, N. Y. 

 Monthly. 50 cents per year. 



To those of us who remember this paper in '93 4, the 

 few pages filled with indifferent articles, which reaches 

 us now, is something of an eyesore. In our opinion, 

 either a radical change should be made in this sheet, or 

 else it ought to die a sudden death. Lingering deaths 

 are never pleasant, and are apt to draw forth only pity 

 from the onlookers. 



Vol. XIV, No. 11. November, 1897. 



The first article, by Rev. P. B. Peabody, is of a 

 religious, not an ornithological character. The others 

 take the form of notes, none of them being at all 

 exhaustive. On page 104 is given a list of the warblers 

 in the J. P. Morris, Jr. collection, which reminds us of 

 old "Ornithologist nnd Oologist" times, when these lists 

 were a feature — and a good one — of that publication. 



W. E. M. 



Bulletin of the Wilson Ornithological Chapter of the 

 Agassiz Association. Oberlin, Ohio. Subscription 

 price, 50 cents. 



No. 15. The Oberlin Grackle Roost. By Lynds 

 Jones. 17 pp., 2 maps, 1 chart. 



This article is from many carefully taken notes on the 

 habits of a colony of Bronzed Crackles that roosted on 

 the campus of Oberlin College during the spring, summer 

 and fall of 1896. 



It is a very exhaustive account of the habits of one of 

 our common birds. From the abundance of careful 

 observation made by the author, several valuable conclu- 

 sions have been reached. He shows us that during the 

 time when the Crackle is with us in the north, there is 

 a period when he is injurious to agriculture, nnd one 

 when he is beneficial, the latter during the breeding sea- 

 son and the former during the roosting season. He 

 further tells us that the injury done by robbing the nests 

 of other birds during the nesting time is not worth taking 

 into account, and that the few berries that they eat are 

 probably not of any loss to the fruit grower, as they 

 make no complaint against this species. "The only real 

 damage done by the Grackle," he states, "is when they 

 feed upon growing grain and upon that which has not 

 been put out of their reach. " He thinks that the little 

 damage done by these birds is too small for "the death 

 sentence to be pronounced as a penalty." 



This article by Mr. Jones is an excellent example of 

 the kind of ornithological work that our science most 

 needs, and shows us that there are still many facts yet 

 to be discovered, regarding the life histories of even our 

 most common birds. — T. L. H. 



No. 16 and 17. General Notes. 14 and 16 pp. 



These two issues are devoted to "General Notes," 

 and under this heading many good notes are given. 

 The article by Mr. Jones on the migration of the Whip- 

 poorwill and Purple Martin is of especial value, and it is 

 to be regretted that so few observers are aiding in this 

 work.— W. E. M. 



The Iowa Ornithologist. David L. Savage, Salem, 

 Iowa. Quarterly. 40 cents per year. 



This neat publication, while it holds rather closely to 

 the ornithology of its own state, is nevertheless of interest 

 to ornithologists at large. Its articles are instructive and 

 interesting. 



Vol 3, No. 4. October, 1897. 



Under the title, "One Small Piece of Ground," B. 

 H. Wilson gives interesting data concerning birds found 

 on a point of ground about two acres in extent. An 

 annotated list, "Summer Birds of the Oneota Valley," 

 by Paul Bartsch, is the only other article. Beside these 

 there are many interesting discussions between members. 



W. E. M. 



The Auk. L. S. Foster, New York City. Quarterly. 

 $3.00 per year. 



The Auk is always filled with interesting matter, and 

 no ornithologist, be he big or little, can afford to miss 

 reading its pages. 



Vol. XIV, No. 4. October, 1897. 



Contains a variety of good papers. C. W. Richmond 

 gives a short synopsis of our knowledge of the Western 

 Field Sparrow. A colored plate by J. L. R [idgway] 

 illustrates this article. An annotated list of the birds of 

 Fort Sheridan, Idaho, by Dr. J. C. Merrill, follows. 

 W. H. Phillips gives a list of birds collected in Venezuela, 

 and describes two new species. E. S. Thompson 

 occupies two pages under the title, "Directive Coloration 

 of Birds." A very interesting half-tone accompanies his 

 remarks. The "General Notes" are of the usual inter- 

 esting character. The other articles appearing in this 

 issue are: "The Horned Larks of Maine," by O. W. 

 Knight; "Notes on the American Barn Owl in Eastern 

 Pennsylvania," by J. H. Reed; "The Terns of Muskeget 

 Island, Mass., Part III," by G. W. Mackay; "Critical 

 Notes on the genus Auriparus," by H. C. Oberholser, 

 and "The Sitkon Kinglet," by Wm. Palmei 1 . 



Birds. Nature Study Publishing Company, Chicago, 

 111. Monthly. $1.50 per year. 



When this paper first made its appearance. January, 

 1897, we were disappointed. Its illustrations were 

 beautiful, but they were all of foreign birds, and, like 

 loyal Americans we demanded pictures of our own birds. 

 The publishers supplied the demand, and to-day Birds 

 occupies a place on the literary field all of its own. Its 

 illustrations, as far as color is concerned, leave little to 

 be desired, but, unfortunately, living birds will not "sit" 

 for pictures, and the publishers are obliged to use 

 "stuffed" specimens. The pictures show this, as they 

 lack the "something" which a living bird imparts to a 

 landscape. A little more is to be desired in the way of 

 shape also. Despite these little defects, Birds serves its 

 purpose, that of educating the youth of our age along an 

 ornithological line, and we would recommend that every 

 parent supply his children with a copy. The average 

 parent would also find instruction in its columns. The 

 reading matter is in a popular style, sometimes the birds 

 themselves joining in the discussion. 



As a frontispiece of this issue we give a plate from 

 the July, 189 7, number of this publication. 



Vol. II, No. 5. November, 1897. 



Of the illustrations of this issue, that of the White- 

 fronted Goose is probably the best. Those of the Belted 

 Piping Plover, Cerulean Warbler and Yellow-billed 

 Tropic Bird follow in the matter of excellence. An 

 interesting sketch of John James Audubon occupies the 

 first two pages. 



