272 ORNITHOLOGICAL NOTES FROM THE WEST. 
resembled the song of the chat, with which at such times its whole 
demeanor strikingly accords. tag: 
Among rasorial birds, the quail and the prairie chicken, both 
very recent emigrants, it is said, from the Kast, were occasional, 
and here reach their present western limit. The wild turkey is 
still abundant along all the more heavily wooded streams, The 
sharp-tailed grouse is also common, especially to the northward of 
Fort Hays th 
Hawks were by no ‘means numerous, excepting perhaps, the 
marsh hawk, which was moderately frequent. A single pair of 
duck hawks (Falco peregrinus) was found breeding on a dif ; 
near the Saline, and one nest of the red-tail was found, Sparrow 
hawks were also occasionally seen near the timber, and a single 
pair of ravens was observed. The black vulture (Cathartes aura) 
was also frequent but far less numerous than would naturally be 
expected, from the abundance of food afforded them by the 
thousands of carcasses of decaying buffaloes that are scattered 
over the plains. The little burrowing owl (Athane hypogea) W8 
seen at intervals, living in colonies in the prairie dog towns. 
Water birds were few, the only ducks seen being a few represent 
atives of the wood duck and the green-winged teal. The pee 
. sandpiper was more or less frequent along the streams, but the 
killdeer plover was by far the most numerous representative of: 
alle. The so-called “mountain” plover was also occasil™™ 
and generally seen on the dry prairies far away from the streams 
lew (Numenius borealis) and a single sinall colony of the 10! 
billed curlew (N. longirostris) were also observed, 
breeding. The only herons seen were one or two examples 
of the little green heron and the night heron. espe 
A few weeks passed near Fort Hays, in mid-winter, enables 
to add a few notes respecting the winter birds of the Pine 
species only of the summer birds was met with in numi 
winter. This was the horned lark which was exceedingly p 
ous. The snow. bunting was also abundant, and 1- 
there were bushes; the rough-legged buzzard was t 
mon hawk. None of the remaining twenty-four peli 
total number of thirty observed, were numerously represe 1 
