16
Concord Mass.
1897
April 1-5
(No. 3)
   Concord is a good place at which to note the
arrival of Colaptes since this bird does not winter here
in any numbers. I heard one "shouting" on the Bedford 
House opposite the cabin on the 3rd and another the
next day. This morning (April 5th) I heard three,
one near the Manse, another at Hunt's Pond, and the
third at Ball's Hill. Hence I concluded that the
first real flight from the south occurred last night.
" [April] 2 
  While passing through an opening in the pines on
Bensen's Knoll this afternoon I startled a fine adult 
Goshawk, a large bird & I suppose a female.
She was perched scarce five feet above the ground
among the cones and dead branches and did not take
wing until I was within three or four yards startling
me by her sudden appearance so very near.
Bearing something (which looked like a plucked and
half-devoured Partridge) in her talons she flapped
heavily off across the opening & into some pines
beyond where I failed to find her again. She
had either lost or was moulting her tail feathers
for the tail was very ragged with not more than
half of its feathers of normal length.
[margin]Accipiter 
atricapillus[/margin]
" [April] 2 & 3  
  On both these evenings a little before sunset I
saw two or three Red-wings feeding on stubble fields
near the river bank and singing at short, regular 
intervals on the ground, rarely pausing and erecting
their heads as they gave the twerd'l'ee and then
rambling on in quest of food. They were not together
but at different places. 
[margin]Agelaius 
phoeniceus
Singing while 
feeding on 
the ground[/margin]