71
Lake Umbagog.
1897.
May 24
  Heavy rain last night and frequent brief showers
during the forenoon. Afternoon fair the sun shining
forth at brief intervals. Light E. wind all day. Warm.
  I spent most of the forenoon on the boat taking, however,
just before dinner, a paddle around the eastern shores
of Great Island. Birds were singing freely. Besides the
regular summer resident species I heard a Great-crested 
Flycatcher. Also heard Bobolinks chinking high in air
& apparently migrating (11.30 A.M.). At the southern
end of Great Island fully fifty Chimney Swifts with
an equal number of Swallows were flying about over
the Lake & tree tops.
[margin]Birds singing
freely.[/margin]
[margin]Crested Fly.
Bobolinks[/margin]
[margin]Swifts &
Swallows
over lake.[/margin]
  Watrous spent the forenoon along the eastern shores
of the channel between Great Island & the Tidswell place
and among the islands S.E. of the Narrows. He found
a Whistler's and a Black Duck's nest and took me to
them in the afternoon. The Duck's nest was near
the S.E. extremity of Bear Island, the Whistler's in
an old maple stub near the landing to the Tidswell
place. Charlie Tidswell, my cook, tells me that
a Duck of some species nested in this stub every
year when he lived on this farm 12 -15 years ago.
[margin]Nests of
Whistler &
Black Duck[/margin]
  I took my large camera and photographed both
these nests as well as that of the Black Duck found
by Watrous in the Great Cove yesterday. The light
was exceptionally clear & good and, as afterwards
turned out, I secured some fine negatives. I went
in the new canoe, Gilbert & Watrous in one of the boats.
[margin]Nest of
Black
Duck[/margin]