112 
BIRDS OF PENNSYLVANIA. 
H D. Moore , Somerset county: Small flocks and scattered birds are now 
seen— M. M. Larrabee, Cameron county: In former years Wild Pigeons 
in large flocks were found roosting and breeding in the beech woods 
along Bowman’s creek, in Wyoming county, and in Lake and Boss town¬ 
ships of this county, but in the last six years have seen only small flocks, 
and oftener only single pairs in Wyoming county. Last year (summer, 
1889,) I saw a number of single pairs and their nests in Lake, Boss and 
Fairmount townships in this county— David J. Linskill, Luzerne county: 
No Wild Pigeons through this section since 1875, at which time they 
were very plenty, feeding principally in the mountains. A few stray 
birds have been shot this fall (1889) along the South mountain, which 
causes me to think that they may occasionally breed in this locality, but 
not in such numbers as to attract attention— T. L. Neff, Cumberland 
county : In the year 1856 this neighborhood was visited by Wild Pigeons 
in vast numbers. In the early morning they would fly eastward from 
the Laurel Hill mountains, nine miles east of Mason town, alighting in 
cornfields to feed; and about the middle of the afternoon they would 
commence their return flight to their roosting place in the mountains. 
They would come sometimes in such immense flocks as to almost shut 
out the sky, like a cloud, and two or three hours would pass during each 
morning and evening migration. This occurred in the early part of 
April. Since then there has been two similar visits, but not in such im¬ 
mense numbers, and I cannot now name the years. It has been perhaps 
twenty years since they were seen here in this manner. Formerly, in 
the fall, they would be found feeding upon acorns, but they have become 
very rare of late years— G. W. Linton ( letter July, 1889), Fayette county. 
Mr. J. G. Bohn, of Lebanon, says (letter August, 1889): “ In regard to 
Wild Pigeons, they are birds of the past in our regions. Years ago our 
woods were full of them; in the fall you could count them by the thou¬ 
sands, and here and there you could find them raising young. Our sec¬ 
tion of country is stripped of its massive forests and these birds are 
gone. I have not seen one in my hunts in fifteen years. I even can¬ 
not as much as get a specimen to mount. Mr. Otto Behr, of Lopez, 
Sullivan county, in a letter dated February 28, 1889, says: “The last 
c pigeon roost ’ here was in 1869. * * * They say the nesting ground 
which was along the Mehoopany creek, Wyoming county, four miles 
from here, was seven miles long by two or three miles wide. In 1876 they 
started to build up here again when a snow storm that covered the ground 
for several inches drove them off. Since then they have had no regular 
nesting place here.” Mr. Chandlee Eves, Millville, Columbia county, 
in a letter of September 24, 1889, gives the following interesting infor¬ 
mation of the method employed to capture pigeons: “ About thirty-five 
years ago I used to see a great many Wild Pigeons in the spring, many 
were caught with spring-nets. The party catching them would have a 
‘bow-house,’ or bough-house, to secrete themselves in ; they would have 
