78 
THE SCIENTIST. 
Foit THE Scientist. 
Some Bare Birds of Wayne County, 
Micliigran. 
By W. C. Brownell, M. D. 
When Mr. Trouslot asked me for an 
"article,'' I was "just out" of an idea, 
and as I had no recent collectint^ ex- 
perience to relate, I hesitated; but trust 
what I shall otfer, in the way of a partial 
list, with remarks more or less in detail, 
of some of the rarer birds of this section, 
may be of interest to the Ornithological 
and Oological readers of the Scientist. 
In the vicinity of Detroit City, with 
its spires and domes, its tall electric 
lif^ht towers, its shipping, its railroading 
and the mighty din of wholesale traffic 
that characterizes the modern western 
town; including portions of the Detroit 
and Rowge rivers and the river of St. 
Clair, there are certain localities that 
seem to be favored resorts both per- 
minent and temporary, for numerous 
rare species of birds. Some remaining 
throughout the year and others again 
making them their temporary resting 
place, while on their migratory journeys 
to the North and South. 
During the six or seven years of my 
residence at Plymouth, abundant oppor- 
tunity was afforded me to make some 
valuable additions to my collection of 
eggs, as well as to note the occurrence of 
many rare trancients. I shall also quote 
largely from the records of my worthy 
colaboraters; Messrs. Durfee of Grand 
Rapids formerly of Lironice; Mr. J. B. 
Purdy of Plymouth and Mr. Davidson of 
Detroit. 
The fir^t bird I shall mention, is the 
Large-billed Water Thrush, a breeder; 
an account of which is given in an 
article written by myself in the Oct. No. 
of the OrnithoUgist and Oologist. 
Earlier in the spring of '88, while on a 
hunting expedition near his home, Mr. 
Durfee shot several fine specimens 
of the Evening Grosbeak. They were 
doubtless on their way to their 
Northern breeding grounds, and when 
discovered were busily engaged in 
feeding in a small alder and willow 
thicket, and to quote Mr. D.'s words 
"were singing a most charming note." 
Their appearance here in '88, is, I believe, 
the first on record. 'I'he ones held cap- 
tive in Mr. Durfee's collection cannot be 
missed from nature and they, in their 
lifeless, j^et life-like state, cannot pine 
for their northern haunts, and as they 
are, they remain a lasting page in a 
chapter of that interesting science under 
which they are classiried. Nesting far to 
the north amid those trackless forests of 
fir and pine, at the extreme northern 
limit of vegetation, only coming down 
when the bleak, cold blasts of winter 
render the whole region almost unin- 
habitable; returning again at early 
spring, again to rear their kind. 
Rare and beautiful singing bird; 
By the woodland wanderer alone is he 
heard ; 
He seeks his home in the forests of pine, 
And only comes down when the midnight 
sun of the Esquemaux refuses to 
shine. 
Traversing a small inland marshy tract 
near my home during the early season of 
'88, I chanced to find what I then sup- 
posed to be the nest of the Clapper Kail . 
One egg was in the nest, and for ten 
days I watched, counting each 
day an additional egg. So familiar did 
the bird become to my visits, that she 
would not leave the nest at my approach, 
but would allow me to pet her, and only 
when lifted off her eggs would she scream 
and cackle in a most ludricous manner, 
finally darting away among the reeds 
and grass, coming out upon the bank, 
where she would walk about in a very 
dignified manner, till I left the nest, when 
she would immediately return. I had at 
that time a large series of Clapper Rail's 
eggs and I declined tuki>ig this set, hop- 
