MASS. (Middlesex Co.) [Middlesex County, Massachusetts] Anthus ludovic. [Anthus ludovicianus] Collurio borealis
1876.
Thursday
Nov. 9 [November 9, 1876] Cloudy with occasional rain. In P.M.
started off with both "Launce" & "Smuggler"
and tramped up through the swamps
as far as Block is. [Block island] where I met Robrt
Nesbitt [Robert B. Nesbitt] with his pointer "Siren". On the beech
knol [knoll] we found a man tramping about
for a bevy of quail which he had scattered
there, and from which he had bagged three
birds. Going to work with the dogs we
soon found some eight or nine of them
which had run together out in the meadow
and as they got up before "Siren" Rob. [Robert B. Nesbitt] &
I fired together killing one of them.
Following them into the cover we
started a number and made some
miserably poor shooting at them. Rob
getting only one more. As we left the
swamp at dusk, "Launce" running on
ahead, came to a fine point in the open
meadow and as I stepped by him a quail
rose, which I shot, this bird making 3
bagged altogether Saw a flock of S. magna [Sturnella magna] &
N. [Robert B. Nesbitt] started a snipe
Saturday
Nov. 11 [November 11, 1876] Clear at sunrise but clouded up soon after and
rained violently by night. The past week
it has rained every day, more or less,
and in most cases more. The whole
country is fairly soaked. Went off after
breakfast taking "Launce". Tried first for
the Block is. [Block island] bevy but could not find
them so drove up on the hill & there
also was unsuccessfull [unsuccessful]. Saw a small
flock of Anthus ludovic. [Anthus ludovicianus] on the meadow
also a Collurio borealis.
[margin]Quail 2[/margin]