W, 1885.J 



FOREST AND STREAM, 



63 



\uht\nl Wffi ar U* 



THE SONG OF THE WHITE-THROATED 

 SPARROW. 



DB. M. Tj. LEACH. 



IN some of the newer parts of Michigan, the song of the 

 white-throated Sparrow {Zonotrichia albiroUis Bonap.) is 

 interpreted as & prayer to St. Theresa. It is heard some- 

 times in the natural groves bordering the outskirts of the 

 newer villages, but general ly only in the wilder and more 

 desolate depths of the forest. * The notes are inimitably 

 clear, sweet and plaintive, and it requires only a moderate 

 play of the imagination to convert the song into the petition, 

 "0, hear me, Theresa, Theresa, Theresa!"" It is not easy to 

 express bird songs by musical notation. In this case we 

 may approximate success by using the flute stop of a cabinet 

 organ, giving in the first three measures one whole note each 

 on C, G and E of the second octave of the treble clef, fol- 

 lowing lightly by three measures in E, each consisting of 

 three-quarter notes and a quarter rest, as follows: 



"=^ 



The first three measures correspond to the words, "0, hear 

 me," and the. last three to the name of the saint, "Theresa," 

 three times pronounced, with the accent on the first syllable. 



The arrangement of musical sounds indicated above, ap- 

 pears to constitute the most perfect and complete form of 

 the song; but it is varied in different localities and by differ- 

 ent performers, as if among birds of the same species there 

 were different degrees of musical talent and different fashions 

 in musical education. In one place, where I bad excellent 

 opportunities to listen, the trill of the last three measures 

 was seldom heard, each measure consisting of a wbole note. 

 In another locality, not many miles away, the trill was the 

 rule, with scarcely an exception. Sometimes one or another 

 of the first three notes is omitted, sometimes "Theresa" is 

 pronounced only once or twice, and sometimes, though 

 rarely, the trilling is continued through more than three 

 measures. The song is sometimes heard in the night. 



I suspect this interesting bird is an accomplished ventrilo- 

 quist. On one occasion I listened for some time to what 

 seemed to be two birds, in different directions and not far 

 off, but hidden from view. The C note was omitted. One 

 would sing two notes in G, which would be followed in per- 

 fect time by two in E by the other bird. I was strongly im- 

 pressed at the time with the idea that there was only one 

 singer present, and that the song, beautiful beyond descrip- 

 tion, was a skillful display of ventriloquism : 

 Deep in the gloom of the wild wood, 



last to a sorrowful plaint— 

 A penitent sparrow's petition. 

 Addressed to the beautiful saint. 



"Hear me, O Theresa, Theresa!" 



Sweetly, in silver-toned notes, 

 Sad as the wail of a lost soul, 



The prayer on the atmosphere floats. 



Why from the gentle saints presence 

 Has the sweet bird been banished so long? 



Or why in the gloom of the wild wood 

 Must he warble such sorrowful song? 



Deep in the gloom of the wild wood, 



List to the sorrowful plaint, 

 And take hiin again to thy favor— 



The sweet bird— O beautiful saint. 

 Traverse City, Mich. 



THE BIRDS OF MICHIGAN. 



BY DR. MORRIS GIBBS. 



(Continued.) 



10. Bialia sialis (Linn.) Haldem.— Eastern bluebid, red- 

 breasted bluebird. 



The first arrivals usually appear in the State from Feb. 15 

 to 20. The earliest note ©f arrival in my books is (Kalamazoo 

 county) Feb. 8. Birds have occasionally been observed in 

 January in the State, and as specimens are often seen in 

 December, it may prove that the bluebird is sometimes with 

 us throughout the winter months in mild seasons. In some 

 severe winters they do not arrive until March, and the little 

 fellows are rarely common before March 10. I have seen 

 them very abundant by the 20th of the month in Montcalm 

 county. The birds evidently migrate slowly, and are cer- 

 tainly more abundant during the height of" the migrating 

 season, proving that a portion of them are certainly only 

 transients and are passing through to the north. 



The preparations for nesting rarely begin before April 12. 

 In advanced seasons a few nests can be found containing 

 eggs by April 15. 1 have met with eggs only one season at 

 an early date. On April 18, 1878, I found several nests with 

 complete sets of eggs, but it was an unusually early season. 

 The height of the nesting season may be placed at May 20. 

 "We may deem such late preparations the result of tardy 

 mating, some young male having had a difficult time in 

 securing a mate. In all communities of birds there are 

 some individuals, more commonly males, which have failed 

 to secure partners for the season. 



Frequently a male of this species, as in the case of many 

 species, after being apparently assured of success as an 

 appreciated swain, is routed by another of brighter blue and 

 redder breast. With birds generally the mating occurs, to 

 all appearances, every season. Many species, of "hawks and 

 other large birds are constant to one mate, and the union is 

 continued till the death of one of the pah; but by the smaller 

 birds new mates are frequently chosen, and some species are 

 proverbially polygamous. In the case of bluebirds the same 

 demonstrations may occur each year during mating season, 

 between well-mated birds which have been consorting for 

 years, that are seen in cases where birds are mated for the 

 first time. I have repeatedly observed the endearments of a 

 pair of robins, which to my knowledge had been mated for 

 several years, the attachment growing stronger apparently 

 each year. 



The mating season with the bluebird begins soon after 

 their arrival in any numbers, and generally lasts until April 

 20 to May 1, during which period the little fellows are in a 

 nervous state often bordering on frenzy. The battles be- 

 tween the males are generally tame affairs, and although 

 occasionally quite s severe contest occurs on the top of a 

 dead stub, or even in the air, as a rule little ill-feeling ap- 



pears to exist. One can often witness a pursuit in which 

 both pursued aud pursuer are warbling forth the delightful 

 notes so familiar to persons acquainted with this sweet song- 

 ster's melody. 



The site chosen for a nest is variable, the birds in their 

 selection of a suitable spot being largely influenced by sur- 

 roundings. The situation usually preferred is a cavity in a 

 dead stub or tree, in a knot hole in the body or limb. 

 The excavations by woodpeckers arc frequently occupied, 

 Bird houses in dooryards are also used, and even the spaces 

 in the cornices of buildings are taken possession of. Since 

 the invasion of the English sparrow, many battles have oc- 

 curcd regarding the occupancy of some favored site formerly 

 under bluebird rule, and it must be told, with ill-favor 

 toward the interloper, that in pugnacity and strategy the 

 sparrow is the superior, 



The nest, a rude, illy-constructed affair, composed of 

 grass, occasionally a few small twigs, roots and a few a 

 feathers, is placed loosely in the cavity selected, and con- 

 tains lour or five light-blue eggs. The number of eggs is 

 occasionally six, but more than five eggs is an uncommon 

 occurrence. In an article that recently appeared, collectors 

 mentioned the finding of seven and eight eggs in sets. The 

 cowbunting frequently selects the nest of this species in 

 which to deposit her eggs, and I. once found a nest contain- 

 ing five eggs of the rightful owner and three spotted alien 

 eggs. Such a set when hatched would make a nest full of 

 young. 



An addled egg is often found in a nest of young, and in 

 one cavity I found three more or less complete sets, in all 

 twelve eggs. Such an occurrence can only be accounted for 

 in one way; the cavity was first occupied by a pair of birds, 

 which were driven out after the eggs were deposited, or per- 

 haps the birds were frightened or destroyed. A new set of 

 eggs was then laid by pair number two in a new nest built 

 over the first, and a second time the eggs were left by the 

 parents. Let us hope that the first pair rallied and again 

 took possession of the cavity. The hole in question contained 

 three nests, occupying a space from the bottom upward of 

 eight inches. The lower set of four had lain cold and de- 

 serted at least a month ; the second set was all of two weeks 

 old, while the upper set was being incubated at the time. A 

 few instances have met my observation where the rightful 

 owners of a nest had attempted a riddance from the cow- 

 bird's eggs by building a new nest over the polygarnist's eggs, 

 and had even sacrificed their own eggs, two in number, in 

 one instance. 



Average length 6.58 Wing. ...312 Extent. . ..10.11 



Greatest length 6.80 " ....3.61 " ....11.43 



Shortest specimen length.. C 36 " ....2.64 " ....8.80 



11. Sialia artica Swains. — Arctic bluebird, Rocky Moun- 

 tain bluebird. 



A single authority embraces this species in the State, a 

 list of birds of the Upper Peninsula, by Dr. S. Knceland, 

 Jr., entitled "On the Birds of Keweenaw Point, Lake Su- 

 perior.'' The list embraces 147 species, and was published 

 by the Natural History Society of Boston in their proceed- 

 ings 1857. 



The bluebirds known to me are very advantageous to the 

 agriculturist, and from April to September are eminently 

 beneficial in our State. The food consists principally of 

 grasshoppers, spiders and larvae during the summer months. 

 In point of merit the bluebird ranks higher than the thrasher. 

 Fruit is only occasionally eaten as a relish by our familiar 

 fiiena. 



12. Polioptila wmilea (Linn.) Scl.— Blue-gray gnatcatcher. 

 This dainty, airy, woodland bird arrives in the latter part 



of April as a rule, but occasionally not till May day has 

 passed. The earliest arrival recorded in my experience is 

 April 18. 



Soon after arriving the pairing season begins, aud from 

 May 10 to 20 the restless, active creatures are constantly on 

 the move from daylight to dark. The species is pre-emi- 

 nently active from the time of its arrival to its departure in 

 September, but during the few weeks occupied in mating 

 and nest building it is even more on the move. Incessantly 

 skipping from branch to branch, spreading its tail or flirting 

 it from side to side, up and down, dashing into the air witii 

 the impetuosity of a hawk, wheeling and returning to its 

 perch, where the tiny insect disappears with a snap of its 

 captor's bill. Now chivalrously flying about its mate or 

 pursuing some imprudent bird that has ventured on its do- 

 main; again twittering and chattering along a delicate twig, 

 in evident attempts to attract its inamorata's attention. 



During all these varied movements our sprightly friend 

 has been as noisy as it is possible for so small a creature to 

 be, and though there is no evidence of a regular song, the 

 sprightly notes are nevertheless very pleasing. The song, if 

 it can be called one, is a feeble effort; only a few chirping 

 notes issuing from its delicate throat. The call notes are 

 few and resemble the song. 



The nest, generally completed by May 25, is a very artistic 

 affair, and excels in beauty and neatness of construction all 

 other nests of Michigan birds, not excepting the humming- 

 birds. Formed in its framework of various fibrous materials 

 and lined internally with soft substances, it at once suggests 

 auite a substantial structure, as well as an inviting habita- 

 tion. Its elegance, however, consists in its grace of form 

 and external lining, and though the iuterior is perfect, the 

 finish of the outside is really a marvelous piece of work. The 

 size of the nest is in accordance with that of the bird, but 

 appears much too deep. The structure, situated on a limb 

 from two to ten inches in diameter and looking like a lichen- 

 covered knot, is about two inches high externally, one and a 

 half inches deep inside, nearly two inches across the top, 

 while the cup is but little over one inch and a quarter across 

 at its orifice. Many neets that 1 have examined were smaller 

 than the one described and many are also larger. Some 

 nests are quite shallow, and again one is found very high in 

 proportion to the size. 



The bird while on the nest— or, as we may say, literally, 

 in this instance, in the nest— sinks so deep into the cup that 

 only a bill and the end of a tail are to be seen projecting 

 above the brim. Some birds, in fact, are so completely 

 hidden that they cannot possibly be distinguished from the 

 ground. 



The outside of the nest, with us, is covered with small 

 pieces of lichens, mostly greenish, but some of a brown and 

 yellow color are also used, the whole exterior presenting a 

 very pleasing appearance. So far as I know, the only 

 Michigan birds besides the gnatcatcher which cover their 

 nests with lichens are the hummer and yellow-throated vireo. 

 The lichens' are attached to the framework of the nest, in 

 the case of the gnatcatcher, by spider's webs and the silken 

 fibers from the common milk weed pod aselepias. The 

 saliva of the bird, perhaps of a glutinous nature, may be 

 used, but to this I cannot attest. The framework of the 



nest is, although of delicate materials, quite durable in its 

 makeup, and the fragments of lichens are detached only by 

 the use of some force, so carefully are the ragged edges of 

 the little pieces interwoven with the fibers composing the 

 body of the structure. 



1 once discovered a nest nearly completed on May 12, 

 which is an unusually early date. Eggs are rarely found in 

 the nest of our little ashy blue friend before May 20, In 

 complete sets they are most abundant from May 25 to 

 June 10. I am quite well satisfied that only one brood is 

 reared in a season, and consider those cases where eggs are 

 taken in July, as instances of tardy nesting, or, perhaps, the 

 first set of eggs had been destroyed by some small mammal, 

 or even by an urchin, although'a nest would rarely be found 

 by a school boy and could be taken by no tyro in climbing. 

 The red squirrel is a predatory scamp and does much 

 damage to birds' nests. Few nests of this bird are found by 

 collectors, unless the old birds are watched while building 

 or feeding the young. The nest, placed as it is ou the upper 

 side of a limb, and much resembling a knot or excresceuce, is 

 very difficult of discovery even when the tree in which it is 

 built is known. 



The uests arc more common in woods composed of the 

 white oak, QjtercuH alba, in fact, 1 have met with only one 

 instance in which a nest has been discovered in any other 

 species of tree. The nest alluded to was found in a hickory, 

 but in an oak woods. The birds are often heard in timbered 

 lands, and the nests are undoubtedly built there, but are so 

 high up that they are not easily found. The nests in oak 

 trees are generally placed on nearly horizontal limbs, of a 

 size not exceeding four inches, and are frequently quite fif- 

 teen feet from the body of the tree. Nests situated on small 

 limbs, aud quite forty feet from the ground, are not easily 

 secured, and the devices of enthusiastic collectors often go 

 for naught, 



The usual method for securing the eggs from a nest placed 

 ou a small limb is to go out to it from a larger limb above, 

 trusting to the weightof the body to bend the upper limb down 

 so that the eggs may be reached. The return journey is more 

 difficult; the nest having been torn from the limb, and the 

 eggs placed in the mouth, the work of reaching the trunk of 

 the tree is the next most important point iu this hazardous 

 undertaking. The limb has bent with your weight, and you 

 must go up hand over hand to the trunk before considering 

 yourself safe. Provided the set of eggs is secured complete, 

 such an adventure is not looked on with dread by an enthu- 

 siastic collector, and the pretty brown-spotted eggs are gen- 

 erally considered as good pay for all trouble incurred. 



The nests are usually placed from twenty to twenty-five 

 feet from the ground. 



The blue-gray gnatcatcher is rather restricted in its north- 

 ern range, and is only common south of latitude 48° north. 

 During four years' observations in Montcalm county, I failed 

 to note its occurrence, while only thirty miles to the south 

 it is comparatively common. Kueeland fails to record it in 

 the Northern Peninsula. I have never seen it north of 44° 

 north latitude. 



%mqe J?## Htjd 



NEW ENGLAND GAME INTERESTS. 



AS previously suggested, the chances are that the attempt 

 to open September for the shooting of moose, caribou 

 aud deer in Maine will blow over. At a well-attended legis- 

 lative hearing before the Committee on Fisheries and Game, 

 at Augusta last week, a large number of petitioners were 

 represented — over 400 from one section, including Phillips 

 and Rangeley. Capt. Fred O. Barker, of Camp Bemis and 

 Mooseluc mag untie steamboat fame, and one of the hotel 

 keepers at Phillips, led in the argument for the petitioners. 

 They attempted to prove to the committee the value of the 

 deer in the Maine woods to the guides and hotel keepers, 

 representing that with September an open month each deer 

 would be worth from $75 to $100, whereas now they are of 

 no value. The people of Maine cannot hunt deer in Octo- 

 ber, November and December, the weather being too cold. 

 One of the gentlemen argued, however, that, September 

 might be opened without harm to the deer, since the foliage 

 is then so thick that nobody could ever catch them; but he 

 did not say how long he thought visiting sportsmen could 

 be fooled into paying from $75 to $100 for the privilege of 

 trying. 



The arguments for the petitioners were ably answered by 

 Dr. Hunter, of Machias, one of the most sensible and earnest 

 friends of game protection in the country, followed by ex- 

 Governor Selden Connor, himself a renowned deer hunter — 

 in open season — although a cripple from wounds received in 

 the service of his country. Their arguments were strong 

 and to the point, and at the close the petitioners were given 

 "leave to withdraw." This effectually settles the question 

 for two years more, unless tnc friends of open September 

 try the desperate chances of a minority report, or can pre- 

 sent their measure in some new form. 



But the war is not euded in Boston. In fact, the worst 

 enemies of game protection are pretty thoroughly fortified 

 just now. Notice was promulgated, the other day, of a 

 hearing on the game question before the Committee on Agri- 

 culture of the Massachusetts Legislature, on Tuesday of this 

 week. Immediately the game dealers took alarm, and a 

 meeting of the Produce Exchange was called to take action. 

 The term Produce Exchange is high-sounding, when not 

 more than twenty game dealers are interested. But they 

 are wealthy and 'influential, and the whole Produce Ex- 

 change Association, including over 500 members, many of 

 them good friends of game protection, allows its name and 

 influence to go with the game dealers — either by default or 

 neglect. These game dealers have coined money by buying 

 for almost nothing and selling for high prices, game when 

 out of season and unlawful in other States, hence their 

 extreme sensitiveness whenever the term game protection 

 happens to be broached before the Massachusetts Legisla- 

 ture. 



A good deal of bitterness cropped out, as it usually does, 

 at the Produce Exchange meeting on Saturday, though the 

 meeting was composed almost entirely of game dealers and 

 those interested in refrigerators. The proposed legislative 

 hearing was styled "The Annual Onslaught," and some 

 bitter talk was made. A committee of ten was appointed 

 to attend the hearing and oppose any legislation which 

 should look toward hindering Boston from being the plague- 

 spot which will work the extinction of the game birds and 

 animals over a wide district of the Lnited States, provided 

 this Produce Exchange committee can have its way and full 

 sway a few years longer. But, thanks to the Fish and Game 



