1874. 
General observations. 
(July 21) 
Oct. 17. 
“ 2b. 
« 22 . 
NoYw 14. 
1875,, 
Jan. 24. 
J an. 28, 
Middlesex County, Mass. 
Spent the evening on the Assabet River, Concord. 
Nearly all the characteristic birds were singing at sunset 
In the dusk I saw numerous Swallov/s going to roost in the 
thick alders bordering the bank. Shortly after dark the 
new moon shed a dim light over the scene and nocturnal 
sounds succeeded diurnal ones. Bats v/ore very numer¬ 
ous and their shrill squeaking v/-ore hoard every where. 
Whippoorwills were singing in the distance. At one time 
many Cuckoos sang many times in succession, answering 
one another from the opposite shores. 
The autumnal coloring is probably at its perfection 
now, and the arches of the v/oods are everywhere perfect 
canopies of gold, russet, and crimson. 
The loaves in the Maple Swam ps are now all down and 
Pout Pond lately so beautiful looks as drear and forlorn 
as in November. 
In the Trout Pond at “Fairyland* , Concord, I saw a 
water-beetle of the verylargest size clinging to the 
tops of some water grasses making a loud buzzing with 
its wings as it vainly tried to take flight. I think 
this species produces many of the ripples one sees-on 
the surface of such ponds of a calm summer evening. 
In seconf growth oaks and birches in Belmont my 
setter pointed a bird which completely puzzled me. It 
rose v/ithin a yard of him, making a loud whirring and 
flevr out of sight. It seemed to be of a dark slate colcT 
and looked as large as a Turkey, 
When frequent heavy snow storms prevail, all our 
winter birds even those v/hose food is of such a nature as 
to be in no danger of submergence, become most restless 
and active, shov^ing evident anxiety in regard to their 
future subsistence. 
In former years I have thought that the abundance of 
cedar berries bore a close relation to the presence or 
absence of such of our vanter birds as feed upon them; 
at the beginning of this winter, however, I noticed that 
the crop of those berries v/as a very scanty one never¬ 
theless Purple Pinches and Pine Grosbeaks have wintered 
in unusual numbers while Robins have been exceptionally 
abundant for the past few weeks. Upon examining the 
cedar trees to-day I found that nine-tenths of them were 
completely stripped of their berries; it should bo added 
that the past three vreoks have been characterized by 
exceptionally severe weather. Granting that this ex¬ 
treme cold may have sent the Grosbeaks south it can hard¬ 
ly have brought the Robins north. Yet the latter were 
certainly absent in December and appeared early in Janu¬ 
ary. 
