Lancaster, Mass.
1902.
May 20
(No 2)
  I went to Lancaster by the noon train. On
reaching Miss Holman's I heard a Wood Pewee in
the elm in front of the house, the first that I have
noted this year. The other birds settled immediately
about the house were the same that we had last
year viz. Robins, a Warbling & a Yellow-throated Vireo,
a Least Flycatcher, several Chippies and a pair of Orioles.
There were also Kingbirds & Yellow Warblers and at least
one Redstart. Meadow Larks & Bobolinks were singing
in the fields across the road and great numbers of
Chimney Swifts careening about over the trees & houses
at evening.
  The Robins who reared two broods successfully last
year under the eaves of the piazza directly in front
of the side door, laying both times in the same nest,
has built a new nest on the old one (using the latter
merely as a foundation) and has already hatched her
first brood of young.
Robin nests twice under piazza roof.
  Late this afternoon I walked through the lane
to the river. The bank has crumbled afresh nearly
back to the big elm and a large colony of Sand
Swallows has settled there. There were many birds
in the Cemetery, among them a Black & Yellow Warbler
& a Canadian Flycatcher, both females. In the woods
beyond the intervale pasture several Wood Thrushes
were singing. In the same direction I heard, at
a great distance, evidently, a Bittern pumping.
A Thrasher was perched in the very top of a tall
hickory flooding the whole surrounding country with his song.
Birds singing at evening on river intervale
95