Sanitary Habits of Birds. — I read, in the April Auk, Mr. F. H. Her- 

 rick's article on the sanitary habits of birds and was much pleased and 

 profited by it. I was disappointed in one respect onlj' — that was that 

 it did not throw any confirmatory light upon a recent observation of my 

 own which had puzzled me a little. 



Late last summer I was watching a pair of Baltimore Orioles feeding 

 their young, when I saw the male take a soft white pellicle from the 

 open and extended mouth of a nestling, and drop it some yards from 

 the nest. 



This was new procedure to me, and I began at once to review the 

 subject of feeding habits, as it was noted in my scant library, but I could 

 find nothing about it. While I was about to doubt my own eyes (at 

 thirty feet through a good opera glass) I received a letter from Mr. H. B. 

 Rugg, of Vermont, saying that some friends of his had been watching 

 some Robins as they fed their young, and had seen the parents take some 

 round white substance from the throats of the nestlings ; and they 

 wanted him to tell them what this was. Then he wrote and asked me 

 what it was. 



It seemed quite a coincidence that he should pass this query on to 

 me just when I was suffering for similar information, but it confirmed 

 my observation. Since it is well known that pellets of indigestible 

 things are frequently thrown up by some young birds, the best that I 

 could suggest was that this might be these same things, which, in 

 regurgitation, had taken on the form of the usual dejections; but not 

 being able to see any of these pellicles after they were dropped, I, of 

 course, could not be sure. Cannot Mr. Herrick, or some close student 

 of the habits of birds tell us something of iiis? 



I had hoped to observe further before mentioning this, but my oppor- 

 tunities are very limited : so I concluded that I had better note it in the 

 July 'Auk,' so that the host of nest watchers this season may, if they 

 please, be on the lookout for the matter. So far this year I have seen 

 nothing of the sort in casually watching two nests of Robins in my 

 yard. 



By the way, the male Oriole noted sometimes regurgitated food to the 

 young, but the mother always came with a particle showing in her 

 mouth. Mr. Herrick's observation that the parent ate the dejected 

 pellicle was new and interesting to me ; for, on the contrary, I have seen 

 the Cardinal and others assiduously wipe the beak on a twig, as if the 

 performance had been disagreeable ; but then this occurs after food is 

 taken, as well. I have noticed that the little Social Sparrows (Hair-bird) 

 may have one place of deposit for the pellicles. For one bi-ood they 

 used the dead limbs of a plum tree exclusively, and none was ever 

 dropped on the way. 



There is a large field here for further observation. Let us hope for 

 more of this, and for something further on this special topic— James 

 Newton Baskett, Mexico, Mo. ^^]^^ XVII, Juiy, 1900. pp.^ff^Soo. 



