75 
UPTON, MAINE 
1874 
Augus t 18 
I saw a number of ducks ( one A.obscura) in the pond, but fired 
only one shot at a sitting bird, wounding and loosing him in 
the weeds. Saw several Perisoreus canadensis and heard them 
utter a variety of shrill hawk like whistles. Came across two 
Picoides arcticus both $. and shot three, one flying. Saw a 
flock of about 30 pigeons flying. On the wooded island a water 
thrush was singing most gloriously its clear beautiful warble 
sounding all the finer from the perfect silence around. Start¬ 
ing up river at 1 P.M. I hoisted my sail and reached the Lake 
house by 5 without taking a stroke with paddle or oars the 
whole distance. At the mouth of the river I saw several flocks 
of Gambetta flavipes as well as a few G.melanoleuca and one 
Tringa maculata. A large flock of Hirundo bicolor was also fly¬ 
ing about the stubs: have not seen them at Upton for three weeks 
Emerging into the lake I saw flying over the water four birds 
which I perceived were new to me and after watching them a few 
moments I came to the conclusion that they were the Hydrocheli- 
don plumbea. After chasing them about for some time I got a 
shot and securing the bird found that my conjecture had been 
correct. Shortly after I killed another when a third which was 
flying near came sweeping down to the dead bird,and hovered in 
true tern style. '-^his bird I also killed, but the remaining 
one escaped, ^heir flight was peculiar and very unlike any of 
the other species: it more resembled a swallow or a petrel’s 
and they kept quite high up frequently hawking about 100 yards 
or more above the water. Again they would seem to be searching 
