Sept, io, 1910.] 
FOREST AND STREAM. 
411 
great areas of lake and marsh and swamp, which 
offer to these birds satisfactory breeding grounds, 
provided they are unmolested on their return in 
spring. We have mentioned the breeding of 
birds in Central Park and in the New York Zoo¬ 
logical Society’s Park in the Bronx, and ac¬ 
counts have been given of large broods of black 
ducks reared at various points in Connecticut, 
especially at the mouths of the Housatonic in 
Connecticut and other rivers. Blackducks and 
mallards breed in considerable numbers in the 
central lake region of New York, and as these 
TrapShoolers P/alform 
Snipe’s Nest on Shooting Ground. 
Toronto, Aug. 26.— Editor Forest and Stream: 
In Ashbridge Marsh, south of Goodesham’s 
byres, in front of the Stanley Gun Club shooting 
house, a Wilson’s snipe nest was found by R. 
Buchanan, May 12, 1910. When found, it con¬ 
tained the full clutch of four eggs. 
It was frequently visited by Mr. Alberts and 
others, and the eggs were hatched out between 
the 1st and 2d of June. The nest and eggs were 
taken by Mr. Alberts and are now in the pos¬ 
session of James Murro. 
The male bird was frequently seen, and some¬ 
times on top of the trap house. The female was 
hard to flush, and lay close during all the shoot¬ 
ing, if not approached from the path of the trap 
house. 
The diagram gives the location of the nest, 
nine feet distant from the path to the trap house, 
and twelve yards from the platform where the 
shooting took place. In the photograph is to be 
seen a gun wad lying in the nest. E. T. 
Kills Turkeys and Game Birds. 
The greatest obstacle met with by experi¬ 
menters in the rearing of our native quail and 
grouse has been the more or less mysterious dis¬ 
ease which is known to turkey raisers as black¬ 
head. Scientific people call it coccidium. 
This is a minute parasite belonging to the lowest 
form of animal life. It attacks the digestive organs 
and the liver, has almost put a period to the in¬ 
dustry of turkey raising in New England, and 
kills off whole broods of hand-reared quail and 
grouse. It is readily communicable; the well 
bird taking up with its food and water certain 
microscopic cysts that are passed by the infected 
bird. Little or nothing is known about any 
remedy for the disease, or even about its treat¬ 
ment. It was formerly supposed that it occurred 
only in the turkey; but it now appears that fowls, 
pigeons, ducks and sparrows have the disease, 
and while they resist it better than do the 
turkeys, they frequently die of it. It is believed 
that the common English sparrow has played an 
important part in the dissemination of blackhead. 
Formerly turkey raising was a great industry 
in Rhode Island, and indeed over much of South¬ 
ern New England. Thirty years ago, Block 
Island alone used to send to the Thanksgiving 
market no less than twenty tons of turkeys. Now 
for many years not 500 pounds have been shipped 
annually. 
The Rhode Island Experiment Station of 
Rhode Island State College has long been investi¬ 
gating this subject. It concludes that practically 
all fowls are infected with this disease, and so 
far as turkeys are concerned, recommends es¬ 
pecially preventive measures against it. All Un¬ 
infected flocks of birds and yards should be pro¬ 
tected by a careful examination of all new stock 
before it is introduced; keep turkeys on grounds 
which are as fresh as may be; change the range 
every year or two and keep the flocks isolated 
from other poultry; keep a watch on the indi¬ 
vidual birds, taking their weight from time to 
time; keep the yards free from sparrows and 
rats and mice, which carry the parasite. Bury or 
burn all birds that have died of this disease. Of 
course, sick birds should at once be isolated. 
Persons who wish to rear grouse and quail in 
confinement must do this on ground that has not 
been run over by fowls and, to be on the safe 
side, the birds should be kept absolutely away 
from domestic poultry. 
birds are unmolested they will tend more and 
more to reoccupy these favorite sections, the 
young birds brought up there returning to breed 
again. 
There seems, therefore, good hope that as 
time goes on, as our laws are improved and are 
better enforced and better supported by public 
sentiment, wildfowl should once more increase 
—if not to the abundance of olden times, at 
least to numbers which will continue to keep 
the great winter resorts over the whole South 
well populated for generations to come. 
To this good end every country dweller who 
is fond of wild animals and of shooting may 
contribute, provided only he is willing to give 
a little time and thought to what will soon be¬ 
come a most fascinating pastime. In old times 
it was a common thing to see, on farms in the 
West, flocks of wild geese, mallards, pintails, 
shovellers and teal, which had been reared under 
hens from eggs taken from nests found by the 
boys on the farm. Many years ago Forest and 
Stream printed a most interesting account of 
the partial domestication of a number of wild¬ 
fowl on one of the lakes in Ceneral New York. 
We believe that the time is coming, and now 
is not far off, when this interesting subject will 
be given careful attention and not a little time 
by many country residents. Orange. 
The Forest and Stream may be obtained from 
any newsdealer on order. Ask your dealer to 
supply you regularly. 
NEST OF WII.SON SNIPE IN ASHBRIDGE MARSH. 
