one set of Orchard Oriole, 
s fr . - J M - *'■ d/ccU., 
YU. Oct. 1882. P. /fa?- 
OfXA^Ji * l/U^u&a 
( 7W jf j^-t- 
Mr. Geo. II. Ragsdale, Gainsville, Texas, sends 
us a double nest, about which he writes as fol- 
lows : “The two nests sent last week in the bunch 
of mistletoe I take to be those of the Or chard 
Oriole and Lark Finch , the latter built in and on 
the former, probably after the Orioles had vacated. 
The nests were placed in a Black Jack tree thirty 
feet high .” — Random Notes. 
O.&O. X. Aug. 1885. p. 
(liAslAJt X-jcji-f V vi 
/no-'C" 1 
Snowdon Howland sends replies on 
“ Wanted to Know.” He says he has whis- 
tled in all the subscribers he can, and he 
has done well. Thinks the Orchard Oriole 
uses green material because it is easier to 
work. It is not because it is easier to 
work but because it can be worked without 
breaking. The nest could not be built 
from dry material. Straw braiders under- 
stand this fully and keep wetting the straw 
as they workP - ^*-*. VTIl.F«b. 1883.p./fc. 
VPui. fdurd d <y f I’eT^ur. 
But sea-wrack enters into the composition 
of no other kind of nests if we bar Terns, 
Sandpipers, Osprey and Crows. The Orcha rd 
Oriole’ s nests here are on the whole the 
showiest bird-homes I know of. Nests of this 
species from Florida, with Spanish moss 
effects, and from Texas, taken by Mr. Geo. B. 
Sennett, are before me, but are not compar- 
able in beauty to the northern examples. In 
addition to the salmon-colored lining and 
peculiar yellow grass exterior, they are placed T..JL7K 
: / 
0. 
in the heart of the biggest bunches of lichen NcomcN 
with which they are interwoven and festooned** 
(d. xvi. -A^r.ny. /D.67-60. 
A Strange Predicament. — Having seen a 
strange bird fly down into some long grass 
I walked up to “ flush” it. I found an Or- 
chard Oriole, which was so embarrassed 
by the tall, thick grass that he could not 
get free enough play for his wings to fly 
up. Less frightened than might be ex- 
pected, he made his way along to my com- 
panion’s foot, scrambled up to his knee, 
and then took flight with ease. 
Minot, Boston, Mass. 
"Young Ool. 1 526. Orchard Oriole (Icterus sfunus). ByT. D. Peiry. Ibid... J) — — — 
i59 6. Icterus sfurius-Bastern Race. By J. M. W. [=C. L- Rawson] 
Ibid., No. 3, March, 1888, pp. 37 - 3 $ 
Icterus spur ius , of the sub-family of Orioles, constructs 
a truly characteristic nest, pouch-shaped 111 form, and either 
pensile or built upon a branch. Soft and flexible grasses, 
neatly and compactly woven together, constitute its outer 
fabric, while within there may exist wool, either vegetal or 
animal, or a lining of fine grasses mixed with horse-hairs. 
The handsomest nest I have ever seen was found by Richard 
Christ, in the vicinity of Nazareth, Pa., in the season of 1883. 
It is of the usual size, being five inches in height, and three 
in external diameter, but different from the typical form in 
the materials of composition. Instead of the leaves of 
grasses, which one naturally expects to see in such struc- 
tures, this was exclusively built of the stems and heads of 
a species of gramineous plant remarkable for its golden 
brightness in a state of dryness. 
A more remarkable nest of this Oriole was found built 
upon a few small branches of a Maple, at an elevation of 
nearly thirty feet from the ground. It is a double affair, 
composed of long, flexible grasses, and securely fastened 
to its support. The larger nest is inversely sub-conical, 
while the smaller, which is joined to the other by ribbons 
of grass, is somewhat similarly shaped, but less compact in 
structure. A circular opening, one inch in diameter, is a 
noticeable feature of the latter. That this additional struc- 
ture served some purpose cannot be questioned. I am in- 
clined to think that it was constructed with thewiew of ac- 
commodating either parent while the other was sitting. The 
aperture alluded to served, doubtless, for the head of the 
non-sitting bird, who, from this position, looking away 
from the main building, could, like a sentry upon an out- 
post, detect with comparative ease and readiness the ap- 
proach of enemies. 
385 . v>/ / 
O.&O. X. July. 1885 . is. 
Wliu owe*. II. I). ... b, 
O.&O . VT.U AW- 1882 . p. Ay 
The Oologiat. 
8Auk,Vll. Jan. inu+ii. 
L. Rawson]. 
In Connecticut. Auk, Vll. Jan. 1890. P AV. 
(fi 
