3 8o 



RECREA TION. 



only cause of their disappearance. Of 

 course it was the prime cause, but when 

 they became scarce they were no longer 

 trapped or hunted for market. When a boy 

 I have seen blackbirds pass for half a day 

 in flocks ^ of a mile wide and as thick as 

 they could comfortably fly. Blackbirds are 

 still plentiful, but I have not seen such a 

 flock in 20 years. Have they been thinned 

 by the gun and net? Hardly! I think 

 change of environment has lent a helping 

 hand. Their favorite resorts being now 

 in cultivation, they have sought other lands. 

 Is not this the case with the pigeons? Other 

 birds change their feeding grounds and why 

 not the pigeon? Who knows but they have 

 migrated into the Southern hemisphere? 

 C. E. Pleas, Chipley, Fla. 



PIGEONS IN MEXICO. 



Some time ago a report was current that 

 the American wild pigeon had been seen in 

 large flocks in Mexico. I wrote several of 

 my readers in that country inquiring if such 

 were the case. Mr. C. W. Pritchett, Jr., a 

 mining engineer, of the City of Mexico, 

 answers as follows: 



In reply to your favor of August 26th, I 

 beg to say that at different times in my 

 travels in the interior I have seen large 

 flocks of the band tailed pigeon (Columba 

 fasciata) but do not remember to have ever 

 seen a specimen of the American passenger 

 pigeon. There is such a striking difference 

 between the 2 birds that I hardly think I 

 could have been mistaken. . 



I congratulate you on your great success 

 with Recreation. We look forward to its 

 coming with eagerness. 



Mr. Whitaker says a number of passenger 

 pigeons are now in the possession of the 

 Chicago Audubon Society, and that he has 

 7 pigeons here. One was sent him by an 

 Indian from the North. 



At Waukesha, a village 18 miles West of 

 here, a man has a pair of wild pigeons. 



Frederick Wahl, Milwaukee, Wis. 



SHEEP AND DEER IN THE YELLOWSTONE 

 PARK. 



There are 25 or 30 mountain sheep on the 

 Fall river cliffs. They may be found by fol- 

 lowing along the top of the cliffs, where 

 their tracks can be plainly seen. Every 

 branch of Fall river that rises in the Park 

 has one or more falls ranging from 50 to 

 500 feet in height. There are several gey- 

 sers at the head of the main branch, and 

 numberless hot springs. I found a chalk lead 

 on the same stream, as fine chalk as I ever 

 saw. I never saw black tail deer in Yellow- 

 stone park, but any number of mule deer are 

 there. I have seen the white tail and the fan 

 tail, or what science calls the dwarf white 

 tail deer. The largest bucks will weigh 60 

 pounds dressed. Badgers are numerous all 



over the Park. I have seen them on the 

 table land between Fall river and Fire Hole 

 basin, also on the Hoodoo mountains. Ed. 

 Willson was the only scout who knew the 

 Park as well as or better than I do. 



M. P. Dunham, Woodworth, Mont. 



CURES FOR SNAKE BITE. 



In July Recreation Mr. P. Selous gives 

 a cure for rattlesnake bite, but it is some- 

 what dangerous unless a person has perfect 

 lips and gums. I give a cure used by a 

 United States army surgeon, of Arizona. 

 He vouches for its efficacy, from practical 

 experience. It can be used by all sports- 

 men and is at hand at any time. If bitten 

 by a rattler, take a sharp knife and cut 

 through the fang marks enough to cause 

 bleeding. Then take some mud and make 

 a dam around the wound or bite, break a 

 cartridge, pour some powder on the wound 

 and touch it off with a match. The poison 

 will be killed and you are all right. If there 

 is no mud or you have no water to make 

 mud, put the powder on. It will have the 

 same effect but will burn a larger spot than 

 is necessary. Another cure is used by pro- 

 fessional snake catchers. When bitten, they 

 kill the snake, cut it open, take out the gall 

 and put it on the wound. 



A. B. Cooper, Colusa, Cal. 



COLOR OF SCREECH OWLS' EYES. 



The note in March Recreation asking 

 for information concerning the eyes of birds 

 and mammals is a good idea. I have 3 live 

 screech owls, Megascops asio, and give below 

 a correct description of their eyes : 



The iris around the pupil is a light green. 

 This is but a narrow line, as you might say, 

 surrounding the pupil. From this it gradu- 

 ally shades out to the margin to a more 

 yellow color. Around the extreme margin 

 is a dark brown ring which extends back 

 under the lids. Over the entire surface of 

 the iris, it is specked quite closely with light 

 brown. 



The pupil at mid-day is about 2-3 open 

 and gradually increases toward night until 

 the iris is invisible. 



I have not been able to obtain, from any 

 firms selling glass eyes, any of a natural 

 color for screech owls. Most of them are 

 straw yellow, and half of the time pupils 

 of a pair are of different sizes. By discus- 

 sion we may get the manufacturers of glass 

 eyes to make them truer to nature. 



I have observed the eyes of a great many 

 other birds but not closely enough to give a 

 detailed description. 



A. W. Pernor, Syracuse, N. Y. 



SNAKE RATTLES. 



Editor Recreation: Do you really 

 think the 43 rattles sent you all grew on 

 one snake? I could send you a string of 

 them a foot long, but several snakes con- 

 tributed to its make-up. It is exceedingly 



