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Birds of Algonquin Park. 
The list given below enumerates the birds 
observed at Algonquin Park, Ontario, during 
three visits there, June 5 to 19, 1908; June 2 to 
19, 1909; and June 2 to 19, 1910. So far as known 
this is the only list of birds of Algonquin Park 
ever printed which covers the whole park. The 
observations reported in Macoun’s Catalogue of 
Canadian Birds have been made chiefly about 
Cache Lake, the headquarters of the Park. The 
region is one of somewhat unusual interest be¬ 
cause of its varied character. 
Horned grebe .Not common. 
Loon .Abundant. Nests frequently on 
small jutting rocks in open 
water; one nest found was 
only G inches from water’s 
edge and 1 inch above water 
level. 
American herring gull.Abundant. Nests usually on 
rocky islands. 
Black duck .Common. 
Great blue heron.Common. 
Spotted sandpiper .Very common. . 
Canadian ruffed grouse-Common. Especially in S. E. 
part of park. 
Canada grouse .Not common. Extremely tame. 
Allowed approach on three 
ocasions to within 2 yards or 
so; seemed stupid (?). 
American sparrow hawk... Uncommon. 
Broad-winged hawk .Common. 
Osprey .Common in S. E. part of park. 
Great horned owl .Common in N. part of park. 
Barred owl .Abundant. Frequently calls by 
day. 
Kingfisher .Common. 
Hairy wooodpecker .Common. One pair had young 
June 3, 1910. 
Downy woodpecker .Uncommon. 
Arctic 3-toed woodpecker.. Uncommon. 
Yellow-bellied sapsucker... Common. 
Pileated woodpecker .Not common. 
Northern flicker .Abundant. 
Night hawk .Locally comm&n. 
Whippoorwill .Abundant in S.E. part of park. 
Swift .Common. 
1 Tummingbird(ruby-throat) Common. 
Fhoebe .One observed 1209 in N.E. part 
of park. 
Kingbird ..Abundant. Many nests ob¬ 
served on stumps out in flood 
wood, 2 to 5 feet above water. 
Olive-sided flycatcher .Quite common. Call heard 
everywhere from tip of tall 
spruces. 
W ood pewee .Common. 
Chebec .Common. 
Blue jay .Abundant. 
Canada jay .Abundant. Not infrequently in 
company with bluejay. 
American crow .Ouite uncommon. 
Bedwing blackbird .Abundant in swamps. 
Bronzed grackle .Abundant. 
Purple finch . Abundant. 
American goldfinch .Common. 
Vesper sparrow .Common in clearings. 
White-throated sparrow ...Abundant. 
Chipping sparrow .Common in clearings. 
Tunco . Not common. 
Song sparrow .Abundant. You are sure to 
find a pair nesting on every 
small island or camping site. 
Swamp sparrow .Abundant in marshes. 
Scarlet tanager .Common. 
Barn swallow .Common in lumber camps 
(permanent ones). 
Tree swallow .Abundant. 
Cedar waxwing .Common. 
Bed-eyed vireo .Abundant. 
Black and white warbler.. Fairly common. 
Nashville warbler .Abundant in second-growth; 
low ground. 
Black-throated blue warbler Mery common. 
Myrtle warbler.Common. Often nests on small 
islands. 
Magnolia warbler .Not so common. 
Chestnut-sided warbler ...Common in second-growth; 
low ground. 
Blackburnian warbler.‘Quite common. 
Black-throated green war¬ 
bler .Quite common. 
Oven bird .Abundant in hardwood; sel¬ 
dom found in pine or spruce; 
seems to prefer maple ridges. 
Water thrush .Ouite common. 
Barilla warbler .Quite common. 
Mourning warbler .common. 
N. yellow throat .Fn,' r i v common. 
Canadian warbler .Abundant. 
American redstart .Abundant. 
Catbird .Rare. Only one observed. 
Brown thrasher .Bare. Only three observed. 
House wren ...Common in clearings. 
'' in*er wren .Ouite common. 
N. Chickadee .Fairly common. 
Bedbreasted nuthatch.Common. 
\ eery .Common in S., E., and S.E. 
part of park. 
Olive-backed thrush .Abundant. 
Hermit thrush .Common in S., E., and S.E. 
part of park. 
Robin .Fairly common. Usually but 
not always in open woods or 
clearings. 
Bluebird .... .\ . Uncommon. Three observed 
near or in clearings. 
Of the identification of the following birds I 
am reasonably, though not absolutely, certain: 
Woodthrush .Heard three times; did not see. 
Wood-duck .Observed at distance in flight. 
Yellow-bellied and alder fly¬ 
catcher. .Do not feel safe in identifying 
or rather distinguishing them 
in the bush; am not sure of 
♦heir songs. 
Savanna sparrow .Heard. 
NEST OF AMERICAN HERRING GULL AT LAKE 
LAVILILLEj JUNE 14. 
Merganser .One of the mergansers is very 
common. I am fairly con¬ 
vinced it is the red-breasted 
rather than the American, 
but seldom saw the male 
and then only at a distance. 
Duck hawk .Probably. 
The following brief notes may interest some 
of your ^readers: 
Most of the warblers find their food only on 
birches, alders and maple. 
One of the characteristics of the northern 
woodland birds in their summer home is their 
excessive shyness as compared with their be¬ 
havior during migration. In migration perhaps 
numbers give courage. The Nashville warbler 
is especially alert and skillful in hiding. Though 
heard everywhere in second growth, singing with 
provoking frequency, you rarely see more than 
the flash of his wings. The mourning warbler is, 
by way of exception, quite bold. 
The typical songs of the park are those of 
the olive-backed thrush, the winter wren, the 
Nashville warbler, the white throat, the olive¬ 
sided fly-catcher, together with the barred owl’s 
hoot and the loon’s singular notes. 
In the eastern part of the park you will not 
infrequently hear the hermit, the veery and the 
olive-back singing vespers together. 
The following birds were observed almost al¬ 
ways, and only in clearings: vesper sparrow, 
chippy, barn swallow, house wren. 
A golden eagle took wolf poison on one of 
the lakes in N. of park in winter of 1908-09; 
mounted now in superintendent’s office. 
Have not observed the long-billed marsh wren 
in any part of the park; whether too far north 
or reeds too late growing up, I do not know; 
other conditions seem favorable., 
On two occasions this spring the female 
ruffed grouse with young made its usual “at¬ 
tack” at us. 
By June the young of the Canada jay are as 
large and apparently as robust as their parents, 
though of course still in their immature plum¬ 
age. 
One can do very little with the Algonquin 
birds without fairly strong glasses. I find Busch 
six-power binoculars sufficient, but at times 
would prefer the nine-power. You moreover 
have to rely a good deal on ear. The olive- 
backed thrush for instance, while heard every¬ 
where, may not be seen more than once or twice 
in a couple of weeks. I spent many a half hour 
in pursuit of the Nashville warbler before I saw 
him sufficiently well for identification. 
John M. Cooper. 
Birds in Minnesota. 
■ Minnetonka, Minn., Oct. 1. — Editor Forest and 
Stream: Perhaps the two most worthless vaga¬ 
bonds of the feathered kindred are the English 
sparrow and the crow. Undoubtedly there are 
those among your readers who profess sympathy 
for them, but I for one am against them. The 
sparrow kills off a few insects that come in his 
way, but the amount of this compared with his 
omnivorous feeding is small, indeed. 
Last spring a pair of sparrows appropriated 
my bird box reserved for the wrens, built their 
nest, laid the eggs and settled down. I re¬ 
frained from breaking up the nest, believing 
that they would be out before the wrens arrived. 
They hatched the brood, but left them to die. 
I tore out the nest, but in two days they were 
back constructing another. I took that out just 
in time to receive the wrens. The sparrows 
harassed the wrens for a time and then started 
to build another nest on top of another bird box. 
This I also tore down, and when they began an¬ 
other on the same box, I shot both of them. 
W'hat is in nine cases out of ten laid to the 
hawk is the work of the crow, but people have 
not eyes to see with; they are not observant. 
Because a hawk circles through the air, do not 
think he is going to carry away your hen, but 
watch the crow winging over the hills. 
The sleek red squirrels are here in abundance 
and 1 have made friends with them. At first 
they were shy and very inquisitive and I threw 
nuts to them from a distance. One day as I 
was writing a little chap came through a hole 
