1902.
June 10
(No. 9)
   While perched on the weed stalk in the meadow watching
us this female Henslow's Sparrow repeatedly uttered a low tee-tee-
tee-tee-tee-tee which suggested the feeble piping of some very
young bird. After we had discovered the nest and were
standing close about it she began chirping anxiously uttering
an exceedingly fine, wiry chip, chip but keeping rather closely
concealed all the while among the foliage of some alders that
fringed the banks of the brook. We saw the male only once - on
the occasion already mentioned when he joined his mate
just after her first return to the meadow.
Call notes of nesting Henslow's Sparrow.
  I can think of nothing further to add save that the
weed stalk on which the female alighted before flying down
to the ground was about sixty feet from the nest.
  Mr. Harriman tells me that within the past week
he has picked up dead near Mr. Thayer's greenhouse
two Yellow Warblers and two Orioles and in the village
street near the Lancaster Inn a Warbling and a Yellow-throated Vireo.
All of these birds were in good condition
and none showed marks of external injury. In both of
the localities just mentioned spraying trees and shrubs
had been carried on extensively just before the birds
were found. Mr. Harriman attributed their death to eating
caterpillars & other insects which had been poisoned by
the sprayed foliage. Of course he has no definite
proof that such was the case but if any more
are found Mr. Thayer will have their stomachs
examined by a competant chemist. The drugs which
are chiefly used in spraying by the Lancaster gardeners
are "pyrox" & "despirine", Mr. Harriman tells me.
Birds poisoned by spraying foliage.
20