General Notes. 
189 
ous south of Camp Grant in Arizona, and says that in its notes and habits 
it bears a close resemblance to the Song Sparrows. This appears to be its 
first known occurrence east of South western New Mexico. For an oppor- 
tunity of examining one of the above-mentioned Texas specimens, and 
for the data respecting their capture, I am indebted to Mr. Ragsdale. — 
J. A. Allen, Cambridge , Mass. 
Early Nesting of the Shore Lark near Indianapolis, Ind. — The 
Shore Lark is well known as being a bird that rears its first brood of 
young very early in the season, but the following places the record nearly 
a month earlier than any before known to me. Professor David S. Jordan 
writes, under date of April 24, 1878: “Professor Brayton shot here (near 
Indianapolis, Ind.) this morning a number of Shore Larks ( Eremophila 
alpestris), and among them were two young birds, about grown. The 
bird usually remains here most or all of the summer, but I never knew 
of their breeding so early.” — J. A. Allen, Cambridge , Mass. 
Breeding of the Shore Lark in Western New York. — My atten- 
tion has been drawn to John M. Howey’s note in the January number of 
the Bulletin (Vol. Ill, p. 40), on the breeding of the Shore Lark (Eremo- 
pliila alpestris ) in Western New York. For the past two years this bird 
has been quite common in our locality, and on June 6, 1876, it was my 
good fortune to find a nest and eggs of this species. The nest was placed 
on the ground in nursery rows of young apple-trees, and was composed 
of dried grasses very loosely put together. It contained four eggs, which 
were blown with difficulty, the embryo being about one third developed. 
During the past season several pairs remained with us all summer, but I 
was unable to find their nests. — H. T. Jones, Rochester , N. Y. 
Red-headed Woodpecker eating Grasshoppers. — Much has been 
said in relation to the change in the habits of the Red-headed Woodpecker, 
and the fact that he has been compelled, by the intrusion of other birds, 
to such ordinary insects, instead of those which inhabit the outside and 
inside of trees, has been noted by many observers. During the summer 
of 1877 I saw one on the prairie, half a mile from the timber, very intently 
bent upon catching grasshoppers ( Caloptenus spretus). The bird made a 
fence-post his point of departure and return, flying off a few rods and 
capturing his game, and then alighting on the post to devour it more at 
leisure. These birds are apparently much less numerous in this region 
than they were ten or twelve years ago. — Charles Aldrich, Webster 
City , Iowa. ( Communicated by E. C.) 
Song of Hepburn’s Finch ( Leucosticte littoralis, Baird). — In a re- 
cent letter (February 25, 1878) from Captain Bendire is the following in- 
teresting note on the song of Hepburn’s Finch. As no writer has made 
any mention of the song of this species, I deem the Captain’s account well 
worthy of a place in the Bulletin. “Yesterday evening,” he writes, “on 
my way to the stable, I saw a solitary Leucosticte on the eave of the roof 
