THE AUDUBON BULLETIN 49 
To the geologist it tells a story of an ancient deposit of river silt under 
conditions that he understands, and it can be used as a chapter in his 
outdoor instruction book. To the bird lover the bank is of interest on 
account of the bank swallows, and the marvelous knowledge that they 
seem to possess as to its value to them as a nesting site. 
The Sag ravine, not far from the junction of the Calumet drainage 
canal with the main drainage canal, within its short confines of stratified 
Niagara limestone, contains a bewildering company of plants, some of 
which are found nowhere else in Cook County, and are only found 
growing on rock surfaces. An approach to the ravine from the adjoin- 
ing fields always disturbs robins and other birds that feed on wild fruits, 
for the ravine contains many plants bearing seeds or berries. 
At Maple Hill station, on the Chicago-Joliet interurban, is the outlet 
of one of the finest ravines near Chicago. Here is a colony of wonder- 
ful, old, hard-maple trees that call to mind the “sugar bush’’ back east. 
Near the entrance on the west bank is a fine, lone specimen of the rare 
Blue Ash. In the wide fan-shaped mouth of the ravine stands one of the 
finest examples of the stratified hawthorn known in the region. Farther 
up the ravine there is a constantly increasing number of interesting 
plants. On the right bank is an ancient limestone boulder on whose 
accommodatingly pitted surface grow columbines, tiny ferns, and other 
rock-loving plants. On the steep sides grow maidenhair, lady and fragile 
bladder ferns, bloodroot, hepaticas, white baneberry, and many violets. 
With all these attractions it is not strange that this ravine is a well- 
inhabited bird sanctuary. Here one can find the catbird, thrasher, scar- 
let tanager, great crested flycatcher, wood pewee, vireos, many sparrows, 
towhees, and the indigo bunting. In springtime the warblers stay until 
the very last minute of their schedule on account of the abundant supply 
of insects. In the narrow strip of lowland across the car line into which 
the ravine debouches, the character of the vegetation changes, and one 
may find jack-in-the-pulpit, green dragon, black and red haws, many 
members of the sun flower and wild lettuce families. 
Spice bush, pawpaws, chestnut and shingle oaks, prickly ash, mul- 
berry, soft and hard maples, cat briar and wild grapevines, many vari- 
eties of herbaceous plants, all contribute food and insects for the bird 
epicures. According to old settlers passenger pigeons formerly came 
to this region in great flocks, and every year flights of Bonaparte gulls 
may be seen following the course of the Desplaines River, drainage 
canal, and the old Illinois and Michigan canal, which here parallel each 
other only a short distance apart. 
Over 7,000 acres of forest preserves are joined in the Mount Forest- 
Palos tracts. If sufficient control may be enforced against illegal shoot- 
ing, this beautiful region with its many ravines may again harbor thou- 
sands of resident and migrant birds, as it no doubt did fifty or more 
years ago. —OrpHEUuS Moyer SCHANTz. 
