774 
FOREST AND STREAM. 
[May 18, i< 
conspicuously as he flits about. It is curious to 
note how many of the plain feathered birds like 
the sparrows and j uncos carry these white tail 
markings, and it has been suggested that they 
are conspicuous color signals important in migra¬ 
tion for the guidance of the wandering hosts. 
Possibly this distinctive marking is worn only 
by the leaders or guards of the winged army, 
and it would be interesting to learn if such leader¬ 
ship is relegated to certain families of the bird 
world, and is a matter of inheritance. 
The gnat-catcher, however, has some funny 
little animal characteristics, for after catching a 
moth too bulky to be swallowed whole, by dart¬ 
ing at it from ambush, he will fly with it to some 
convenient bough where he will tear it limb 
from limb,” turning his head from side to side 
while devouring it, as does a cat when eating. 
And again, when flying about attending to his 
business, he keeps up a series of little squeaks 
for all the world like a mouse, or a humming¬ 
bird, but the latter, besides its mouse-like twitter, 
carries its mimicry of the four-footed kind still 
further, for it emits a strong “mousey” odor when 
confined closely. 
The nest of this wee bird is a gem of its kind, 
so artistically is it constructed and saddled upon 
the upper branches of a tree and usually placed 
so that it is somewhat pendant and is built of 
the finest material in the way of bud scales, seed 
down and cottony substances that the forest can 
contribute, while the outside is neatly covered 
with delicately tinted green lichen, protective in 
coloring and concealing the dainty structure from 
too curious eyes. Within the silken bird cradle 
are laid four or five roundish blue-white eggs that 
are thickly dotted with flecks of brown and lilac. 
Alberta Field. 
Hybrid Bears. 
Hybrids between different species of bears 
rarely, if ever, occur in a state of nature, owing 
to limits of distribution, and their production in 
menageries is not often attempted, owing to the 
difficulty of keeping different species in one den, 
says the London Field. In some cases the diffi¬ 
culty has been got over by putting the animals 
together at an early age, the most successful in¬ 
stance being that of Herr Adolf Nill, of the 
Stuttgart Garden, who for nearly thirty years 
bred hybrids from a Polar sire and a brown 
bear dam, the offspring being fertile inter se. 
The garden was closed and the stock sold last 
year, when the Hon. Walter Rothschild purchased 
and deposited in the Zoological Gardens the 
oldest two of these hybrids. At the scientific 
meeting of the society recently Mr. Henry 
Scherren read a paper on the subject, giving a 
short account of the Stuttgart hybrids. Other cases 
mentioned were the birth of cubs in Regent’s Park 
in 1859, the dam being a European brown bear 
and the sire an American black bear. Cases of 
hvbridity between the brown bear and the grizzly 
bear, recorded in Der Zoologische Garten as hav¬ 
ing occurred in the gardens at Cologne and Han¬ 
over, were referred to, but the author had as¬ 
certained, by the courtesy of the directors, that 
there was nO' official record of the births. The 
last case mentioned was that at Halle-an-der- 
Saale, where on Jan. 23, 1907, three cubs were 
born, the sire being a polar bear and the dam a 
brown bear. The animals had been kept together 
for some years, and there seemed to be little 
doubt that this was the third lot of cubs, and 
that the other two were eaten by the dam. In 
the same garden Dr. Brandes, the director, has 
had for more than a year a female Korean black 
bear in the same den with a pair of sloth bears. 
The animals agree very well, but so far there 
has been no signs of mating. 
The Passenger Pigeon. 
Saginaw, Mich., May 4 . —Editor Forest and 
Stream: I do not think I made clear in my 
introduction to “The Passenger Pigeon” the fact 
that the passenger pigeon was offered for sale 
by N. W. Judy & Co., of St. Louis, Mo., as 
late as 1893. These were received by them from 
Siloam Springs, Ark. This fact is noted on 
page 221 of my book, but not brought out as 
prominently as I wish it had been in the intro¬ 
duction. 
In an article appearing in the Ottawa Natur¬ 
alist, March 22, written by James Flemming, he 
says that Brewster has recorded sending several 
hundred dozens of pigeons to the Boston market 
in December, 1892; also in January, 1893, and 
these were from the Indian Territory. I wish 
to make it plain that instead of the pigeon: 
appearing all at once, as is commonly supj 
about 1878 or 1879, that they did continu 
twenty years after that and as late as 1893 
were offered for sale in the market. I also 
to emphasize the fact that single pairs n 
by themselves could not be expected to 1 
duce on account of laying but one egg am 
quent hatchings might not match up to m 
pair of young birds. Thus it was necessar 
them to exist in colonies, and to maintai 
balance of nature was practically impossible 
existing conditions; that is, the settling 
the country and the warfare waged upon 
by netters, market hunters, etc. 
I have heard so many reports regardinp 
senger pigeons still being in existence in M 
etc., that I must briefly relate a recent e 
ence. While at Cananea, Mexico, a frie 
mine said he had killed hundreds and hur 
of passenger pigeons in the early days in 
consin, was thoroughly familiar with then 
knew positively he could take me in a shor 
in Mexico where I could shoot quantities < 
same birds, for he had done so-. So a little 
after that I made the trip into the Santa 
Mountains and had a good day’s sport wi 
band-tailed pigeon. They were the bigf- 
pigeons that they of the southwest, at 
many other people, constantly mistake f( 
passenger pigeon. I inclose a couple of fe 
from the tail of one, showing distinctly the 
from which they derive their name. The 1 
the passenger pigeon had long pointed fe 
without this mark at all, feathers much longej 
these. My trip to the Santa Rosa was me 
teresting. W. B. Mersi 
A Partridge Query. 
New York, May 13 .—Editor Forest 
Stream: Will you or some of your read 
kind enough to advise me on the foil 
points: 1. Will Hungarian pheasants driv 
tridge (ruffed grouse) out of a preserve in 
the former have been introduced? 2. W 
the best grain to sow for partridge ( 
grouse). That is, to 1 attract them into ; 
serve and make it easier for them to winter 
Travers D. Carr 
OSTRICH CHICKS HATCHING (CAWSON, PHOTOGRAPHER). 
From “The Bird.” Copyright, 1906, by Henry Holt & Co. 
