The Hawkeye Ornithologist and Oologist. Vol. 1. No. 4 April 1888

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Title: The Hawkeye Ornithologist and Oologist. Vol. 1. No. 4 April 1888
Author: Various
Language: English
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VOL. 1 APRIL, 1888. NO. 4.

the Hawkeye
AND OOLOGIST.

EDITED AND PUBLISHED BY
WEBSTER AND MEAD
CRESCO, : IOWA.

Contents For April

An Eclipse Among the Alps H. F. Hegner.
Oologists vs. “Rage Collectors” W. Hull.
Bird Destruction Jos. M. Wade.
The Wood Thrush Jas. B. Purdy.
Canadian Flycatchers, Wm. L. Kells.
Bird Nesting in The North of England Walter Raine.
Notes on Some of the Passeres of Fulton Co., Kentucky L. O. Pindar.
Death of Prof. Charles Linden Correspondence.
The Largest of Its Species New York Sun.
Oological Correspondence Jas. C. Jay.
Suggestions for Properly Forming Collections of Birds’
Eggs Smithsonian Bulletin.
Notes.
Migration Notes.
How to Collect and Prepare Conchological Specimens J. A. Singley.
The Scientist H. F. Hegner.
Care of Minerals W. S. Beekman.

R. E. RACHFORD & SON,
Collecting Naturalists
—AND WHOLESALE DEALERS IN—
BIRD SKINS AND EGGS,
BEAUMONT, TEXAS.

The Hawkeye Ornithologist and Oologist.

“Better to search the fields for health unbought,
Than see the doctor for a nauseous draught,
The wise for health on exercise depend.
God never made his work for man to mend.”

VOL. 1. CRESCO, IA., APRIL, ’88. NO. 4.

AN ECLIPSE AMONG THE ALPS.

BY H. F. HEGNER, DECORAH, IOWA.

Far along the frozen glaciers
Where the milky waters leap,
Through the fresh and quiet valleys,
Down the gorges wild and deep.

Creeps the night: The stars are shining
In the twilight and the gloom:
Drifting through the Alpine heavens,
Gently shines the rising moon.

Now she’s climbing upward; shadows
Dropping from the summit’s crest,
Wrap the valleys in the darkness,
Slumber on the mountain’s breast.

But the earth has trailed her shadow
Far out into empty space;
And the moon walks through the shadow
With earth’s image on her face.

Oh, how often has that journey
By a human soul been made;
Passing through this world of trouble,
Into sunshine—out of shade!

Long I watch her evening journey
Far above the mountain’s reach:
Her sad face is almost human,
With an eloquence of speech.

For my soul is ever climbing,
Through an Alpine world of thought;
Giant Blancs to be surmounted
Icy battles to be fought.

—_Dubuque Herald._

OOLOGISTS VS. “RAGE” COLLECTORS.

BY W. HULL.

By a “Rage” Collector is meant one who is suddenly seized with the idea
that he is deeply interested in oology, and must get together a
collection of eggs as soon as possible. Some are inspired by reading
oological papers, others become interested by associating with those who
are at the height of excitement.

A great many persons are seized with a greater or less desire to collect
stamps, coins, etc. These can be identified at any time, but eggs
cannot.

A true oologist collects with a scientific purpose, actuated by a true
love of nature, and an egg is of no value to him unless its identity is
certain. Some collectors have a large collection, but know little or
nothing about the parent birds. This would not be the case if they
really cared for the eggs, but they simply keep them to gaze upon in
blank admiration and boast that they have so many more eggs than some
one else who may or may not collect with real interest.

I have on my tongue’s end the names of at least two dozen collectors of
this class, those that collect merely for the number of eggs. These
collectors can truly be called “Great American Egg Hogs.” Unrefined as
this expression is, nevertheless it is to the point.

This class of collectors number many hundred throughout the United
States and Canada. The excuse is “that egg collecting is a healthful and
innocent pastime.” Healthful it is, if one collects the eggs himself
(which is not the case with the majority) but as to the innocence, that
is due to the fact that it is not taken under a full view, and as long
as it is healthful and no serious results are immediately visible, it is
taken for granted to be innocent. This is a matter which the American
Ornithologist’s Union is acting upon, and appeals to the true oologists,
for their assistance in discouraging these “naturalists”(?) in their
wild career.—_Milwaukee Naturalist._

BIRD DESTRUCTION.

BY JOS. M. WADE.

Twenty to thirty years ago, it was not an unusual sight to see even the
scarlet tanager, a bright red bird with black wings and tail, flitting
from tree to tree in the heart of our cities like a fiery meteor in the
sun-light, and to find their nests, built very lightly of straws and
similar material on the horizontal limbs of our shade trees. But they
were killed or driven off long before the advent of bird millinery as a
fashion. They were, indeed, a “shining mark,” and every body wanted a
specimen, or thought they did, until at the present time the scarlet
tanager is really a very rare bird throughout the New England States.

The Baltimore oriole, so named because the colors of the bird, black and
yellow, resembled those of Lord Baltimore, has almost met the same fate,
as it has done duty in ornamenting thousands of ladies’ bonnets within
the past five years. Four years ago this bird was quite plenty on the
elms of Boston and suburbs. The hanging nests, made of hemp, old twine,
etc., were quite common. But the past season showed a great change.
These birds have been shot so ruthlessly, both while here and at the
South, and during the migration, that hardly a pair could be found
during the breeding season of 1886.

_Scientific American._

ORNITHOLOGY.

For The Hawkeye O. and O.
THE WOOD THRUSH.

COMPOSED BY JAMES B. PURDY.

The wood thrush is singing from the depth of the glen,
His clear, bell-like music, so pleasing to me
In the fair month of May, when all nature looks gay;
They vie with each other from briar and tree.

In a deep shaded nook, where the woodbine twine,
And the dark gloomy forest conceals them from view;
By a clear, winding brooklet, o’er tangled with vines.
His dear mate is guarding her treasures of blue.

Though dark be the weather and gloomy the morn,
And all other birds in the forest are still,
And the sad face of Nature, all dreary, forlorn,
His clear, mellow notes through the dripping woods thrill.

In the evening, when nature is seeking repose,
And his dear little mate has repaired to her nest,
And the last golden sunbeams are kissing the rose,
It is then that his song is the sweetest and best.

Oh, then man why repine, be downcast on your way.
As through the long years you are journeying on;
For the sadder the morning and gloomier the day,
The happier and sweeter is the wood thrushe’s song.

For The Hawkeye O. and O.
CANADIAN FLYCATCHERS.

BY WM. L. KELLS, LISTOWEL, ONTARIO.

TRAILL’S FLYCATCHER.
(_Empidonax pusillus Trailli._)

In size and general appearance, this species closely resembles the wood
pewee; but its habitat and mode of nesting are much different. It does
not frequent the back-woods nor the high timbered places; and not until
a thick second-growth of low underwood succeeds the original forest in
low swampy places does it make its appearance in the central districts
of Ontario. Then it is so shy and wary, darting off into the deepest
concealment whenever its haunts are invaded by the presence of human
kind, that were it not for its noisy notes, it would scarcely be known
to exist.

It arrives in this vicinity toward the end of May, when its haunts are
being clothed with the emerald foliage of summer, and when it can the
more easily conceal itself from observation, which it appears to dread.
Then, however, the rapidly repeated “wick-we-o” of the male, as he
perches on some elevated, but shady branch, intimate its presence, and
that his mate has probably chosen the neighboring thicket for her summer
home, while should this be penetrated, her sharp “twick,” repeated in a
repellant tone, gives the intruder to understand that she is there, and
that his presence is not welcome.

It is very active in its movements, and darts through the shrubbery with
the rapidity of a flash. It appears to subsist chiefly on insects, many
of which it captures on the wing after the manner of its family. It is
only in recent years that this species has become a summer resident of
this vicinity; and in the particular places where it chooses to reside,
it seems yearly to be more common. In the manner and position of its
nest, it differs from all the other Canadian flycatchers. This is placed
in deep concealment among the thick foliage of the particular shrub,
bush or underwood in which it is built, and if the first efforts at
brood raising are successful, it does not appear to nest again that
season, but if otherwise, it will try again. Its first nest may be found
the early part of June, but its efforts at reproduction appear to cease
after the month of July, and it becomes silent as August advances.

On the 19th of July, 1885, my boys reported to me they had found the
nest of a new kind of bird in a piece of low woods on the farm opposite
Wildwood. They stated that the bird was nearly as large as a hermit
thrush, but more like a flycatcher; that the nest—placed in a low blue
beech—was like an indigo bird’s, but that the three eggs which it
contained, were like those of a vireo. Eager to ascertain what this new
discovery might be, I returned with the boys to the nesting place, and
though the owner was absent, I saw at a glance that it was a discovery
new to me. The nest was placed in the fork of a small blue beech, three
feet off the ground, well concealed among the leaves and surrounding
raspberry vines. It was composed externally of wool and coarse grasses;
and lined with fine dry grass and some horsehair. The three eggs were of
a whitish-yellow hue, with a few redish dots toward the large end. Now,
anxious to see the owner of this nest, I took a ramble through the wood,
where I heard and saw the male bird, and when I returned the female
flushed off the nest and darted into the neighboring thicket, and for
some time I supposed this species to be the olive sided flycatcher, but
learning my mistake, I became certain that it was the _Trailli_, and
have since been confirmed in this identification. The next summer, about
the 20th day of June, within a few yards of the above mentioned place, I
found in the forks of a small swamp elm, about four feet off the ground,
another nest of the same species; much the same in composition, and
containing three fresh eggs, similar in hue and markings. And on the
same day, a few rods further in the wood, another nest of this species,
containing three young a few days old. This nest, however, was in the
forks of a red-maple sapling about nine feet off the ground, and some of
the coarse grass stalks of which it was composed hung down nearly a foot
from the bottom of the nest. Last season I failed to discover any nests
of this species, though I found the birds in several other places.

THE LEAST FLYCATCHER.
(_Empidonax minimus._)

This species, in general appearance and place of habitat, much resembles
the wood pewee, but it is smaller in size, and its mode of nesting is
quite different.

Its scolding notes are the repetition of a simple “chip”; but these are
seldom heard except when its nest or young are approached. Its song, if
such it may be called, resembles the word “chebeck” repeated in a clear
tone, may often be heard, especially for some weeks after its arrival.

Its advent here usually occurs in the latter part of May; and it leaves
Canada for more southern latitudes in the early part of September.

Its usual habitat is the high, rolling, hard-wood timbered lands; and
for the hilly margins of gravel-bottomed creeks, it seems to have a
decided partiality.

In the dry season it feeds occasionally on small fish, which it easily
captures, as they wriggle in the shallow water, though in general it
feeds on small insects and their progeny in various stages of
development.

This little creature is quite pugilistic, and in the pairing season two
males often indulge in a free and fierce fight, which probably
influences the female in her decision of accepting the victor as her
future partner.

The nest of this species is placed in the upright fork of a small tree,
or where some small branches project from a larger stem. It is a neat,
compact structure, much like that of the redstarts, composed chiefly of
the fibrous matter that forms between the bark and wood of decayed
trees, lined with fine hair. The set of eggs, numbering from two to
five, are of a clear white hue. It does not appear to nest more than
once during the season.

[FINIS.]

For The Hawkeye O. and O.
BIRD NESTING IN THE NORTH OF ENGLAND.

BY WALTER RAINE, TORONTO, CANADA.

Crossing the stream above Thornton Force, we ascend a hill; and on
reaching the top a splendid panorama opens before us. Towards the west,
the river Lune wends its way for nearly twenty miles, and after passing
through the town of Lancaster, empties itself into Morcambe Bay. The sun
is shining on the sea, which is twenty miles away, although it does not
appear half that distance. The atmosphere is very clear in this region,
and taking out our field glass we plainly see several ships and steamers
sailing in the Irish Sea. Towards the north are the mountain peaks of
Cumberland and Westmoreland, standing out boldly; to the east stands
Ingleborough mountain, towards the foot of which we make our way. We
soon cross another stream which runs over Beezley Falls and down through
another fairy gorge called Crina Bottom, which is similar to the one we
have just traversed, with numerous cascades, and where more water
ouzels, wagtails and redpolls breed; but we have not time to stay here,
wishing to get on to the moors to find some plover’s eggs.

Crossing some fields we find a nest of the skylark with four eggs. The
mate is soaring high in the air and pouring out his joyous strains; it
reminds us of the old German hymn: “Hark! Hark! the Lark at Heaven’s
gate sings.” He is truly a wonderful songster. Immediately on leaving
the ground, he begins to pour out his song, and soaring upward and
upward, until he is a mere speck in the sky, when he begins to descend
and does not cease singing until he reaches the earth again.

The titlark is one of the commonest birds of this district and we come
across several nests, by the birds starting from in front of our feet.
Their nests are always on the ground, made of dried grass, lined with
hair: and contain from four to six eggs of a dusky brown, mottled over
with darker brown, some having black hair lines around the egg.

A wheatear flying from out of some stones attracts our notice; and here
is a nest made of grass and rabbit’s fur, containing six pale blue eggs,
not unlike the American blue-birds. This wheatear is called stonechat in
America, though it must not be confounded with the English stonechat
which is a different species.

We now reach the moors and are soon up to the knees in heather. Bird
life here is very numerous. Lapwing plovers fly over our heads, crying
“pewit, pewit” in a plaintive note; long-billed curlews are screaming
loudly; golden plovers are whistling; red grouse are crowing; ring ouzel
are calling; and above all can be heard the welcome cry of the cuckoo.
High in the air, several snipes are drumming. This noise is caused by
the bird’s wings as it rapidly descends in the air. Nothing is more
delightful than a ramble over a Yorkshire moor, where the purple heather
grows in place of grass, relieved here and there with stretches of
bracken, gray rocks and boulders. A lapwing rises some distance in
front, and marking down the spot, we soon stand gazing upon its nest and
four eggs with their points inward, meeting in the center, after the
fashion of all plover’s eggs. The nest is simply a slight hollow in the
ground, lined with bits of grass. The eggs have a dark olive ground,
abundantly blotched with brown and black; average size 2.00x1.50. These
eggs are much sought after as delicacies for the table; and are offered
for sale in the markets at three pence and four pence each. We look
around and soon find several more nests and eggs; and in less than
twenty minutes we have taken some two dozen eggs, and as we don’t wish
to carry them along with us, we hide them beneath a rock from carrion
crows until we return.

Jumping over a little brook, a snipe darts away from a tuft of grass. In
the center are snugly laid four richly marked eggs of a greenish-olive
hue, blotched and spotted with two or three shades of brown. A large
series show the eggs to differ much in ground color and markings. This
bird is numerous in Yorkshire; I have found it breeding in all parts of
the county.

Only two species of duck nest in the moors, near the lagoons, the common
mallard and the teal.

The mallard usually lays from seven to twelve pale olive-green tinted
eggs in a nest of grass, lined with down; size about 2.25x1.60.

The teal builds a nest of vegetable substances, lined with down and
feathers. Six to twelve eggs are laid of a buffy white; size, 1.75x1.25.

The short-eared owl is found nesting here; its nest is always on the
ground, a simple structure of sticks, grass and heather, upon which it
lays four or five white elliptical eggs, averaging in size 1.55x1.25.

Three other species of owls nest in this district: the barn owl, the
tawny owl and the long-eared owl.

The latter generally selects some old crow or magpie’s nest; and lays
from four to six eggs, not so round as those of the short-eared species.

Tramping over the moors for a mile or so, a bird rises from the hillside
before us and dashes away at a great rate. Marking down the spot, we
find a stone surrounded by bird’s feathers and insects’ wings, and pick
up a titlark which is still warm. This is the shambles of a merlin hawk
who was just going to dine off the titlark when we disturbed him. We set
about to look around for its nest, when my brother cried out “Here it is
with four splendid eggs.” In a few seconds I was there, gazing on the
treasures with delight and admiration. The nest was a mixed mass of
twigs, heather and brakens, raised a few inches high; and the four eggs
resting in a slight hollow in the center. Their ground color was a dark,
crimson brown, speckled all over with dark brown and black. Some
varieties resemble eggs of the kestril hawk, but a series of fifty eggs
before me do not show such varieties in color as the eggs of the kestril
do. As a rule, they are smaller than the kestril’s eggs and not so
round, nor so boldly marked. We blow the eggs and pack them away with
care, and proceed farther on.

[TO BE CONTINUED.]

For The Hawkeye O. and O.
NOTES ON SOME OF THE PASSERES OF FULTON CO., KY.

THIRD PAPER, BY L. O., PINDAR, PRES. Y. O. A., HICKMAN, KY.

Following the family _Corvidæ_, comes the family _Icteridæ_. The
commoner species of this family in this part of Kentucky are the
red-winged blackbird, the meadow lark, the Baltimore oriole and the
purple grackle. The orchard oriole and the rusty blackbird are also
found; but over two years of study and careful searching in our woods
and fields has failed to detect the bobolink and cowbird.

I purpose to devote this paper to the meadow lark and the Baltimore
oriole.

First come; first served. The meadow or field lark is a common resident
here and seems to collect in colonies. I know of two fields where I can
always find them, while in other, seemingly just as favored meadows, I
have failed to see them.

Early in the spring, I think, of ’87, I shot at one of these birds and
came very near making a clear miss as only one shot struck him and that
cut off his leg. I picked him up and was going to kill him when the
thought came across my mind to make a pet of him. Accordingly, on
reaching home, I put him in a cage and fed him corn meal, which he ate
greedily. He also relished a few wheat grains which I let him have. He
grew very tame shortly, and on several occasions woke me up in the
morning by his clear, rich whistling; but one day I left a lot of meal
by the cage and he killed himself eating it. I would have supposed he
would have known when he had enough, but he didn’t.

Mr. J. B. Richards, Sec’y. Y. O. A., writes me that he has known a wild
bobolink to kill itself by eating too much, and he lost a pet bobolink
in the same way.

The meadow lark is accused by some writers of murdering and devouring,
not only its own, but other birds’ nestlings, and of being an
egg-sucker; but I have nothing to offer on that point myself.

The nest of the meadow lark is made of grass, etc., built on the ground,
often arched over, and sometimes at the foot of a bush or weed.

The eggs are four to six in number; crystal white, more or less marked
with reddish-brown dots; average size, 1.10x.80.

And now, having called the bird a “lark” all through the article, let me
say that it is not a lark at all, but a starling. The old name is,
however, too firmly established to permit of a change.

The Baltimore oriole is a summer resident and quite common. The males
arrive about the middle of April, and the females about ten days later.
In 1887, the males arrived on the 13th, the females on the 23d. On the
30th, I found a nest nearly finished; and May 7th it contained five
fresh eggs. Unfortunately the boy who tried to secure them broke the
whole set.

The oriole is one of our most brilliantly plumaged birds, and on that
account is much persecuted. I have heard that they stand captivity well,
but as yet I have had no opportunity to try.

But it is in the nest that the chief interest in the study of this
species centers. It is a closely woven pouch of various substances,
grass, wool, thread, string, hair, lace, ribbons, rags, paper,
leaves—all these and many more have been found in their nests. I have
one by me now which is composed entirely of horsehair, with the
exception of a white string around the rim to bind the hairs together;
and I was shown one in Fulton, Kentucky, made entirely of long blades of
grass.

I made a careful examination of the nest mentioned in the first part of
the sketch. The foundation was made entirely of white wrapping twine,
lined with dried grass; and as if to render it less conspicuous, it was
covered with green locust leaves—it was in a locust tree—and suspended
as it was, among a bunch of leaves, it was next to impossible to see it.
I discovered it by watching the bird. One string in the nest was over
five feet long. It was wrapped again and again around a limb, then to
the nest, woven down one side under the bottom and up the other side to
the rim where it was securely fastened.

The eggs are white, with blackish spots and scrawls irregularly
distributed over the surface, especially toward the larger end. The
average size is 1.00x.65, according to Coues; .92x.65 according to
Davie. I consider the latter more correct so far as it applies to eggs
taken here.

The bird is known by the various names of fire-bird, golden robin, hang
nest, etc., besides the one given above.

DEATH OF PROF. CHAS. LINDEN.

Correspondence by Ph. Heinsberger.

Prof. Charles Linden, instructor in natural history at the Buffalo High
School, died in that city, of acute mania on Feb. 3.

Prof. Linden came to America from Breslau, Germany, twenty-five years
ago as a sailor, and was engaged as a seaman on the great lakes when his
knowledge of natural history became known and the charge of the
collections of the Society of Natural Sciences was given him, after
which he took his position in the High School.

The Society sent him abroad every summer, visiting in turn Brazil, where
he secured many valuable birds, South America, Hayti, and the Southern
States. In 1879, while exploring the coast of Labrador, he was
shipwrecked and put ashore by a rescuing vessel. It was his custom to
send everything new to him to the Harvard Museum. He was an authority on
ornithology, and a writer of many valuable articles on that subject.

THE LARGEST OF ITS SPECIES

A HINT TO OUR GOVERNMENT.

The biggest American eagle in the United States roosts in the state
house in this city. It is the property of Maj. E. J. Anderson, the state
comptroller, and its roosting place is on an imitation rock in the
window of his private office. The bird measures seven feet and eleven
inches from tip to tip of its wings, and it is so tall that if it were
alive and standing on the ground it could pick off a man’s waistcoat
buttons without getting on tiptoe. The profusion of little fluffy
feathers on the under sides of the wings, the peculiar markings of the
breast, and the depression in the top of the beak are evidences of the
great age to which the bird had attained before it was killed. Those
skilled in such matters estimate that it must have been at least 75
years old. It is a genuine Washington or American eagle, and probably
its only rival in the country, dead or alive, is at the Smithsonian
institute at Washington, but the specimen there is smaller.

The graceful yet powerful pose of this bird and the magnificent sweep of
its wings show clearly how great a libel upon the bird of freedom is the
atrocious figure that attempts to soar over the bundle of sticks on the
back of the buzzard dollars of the present day. If the government will
send an artist to Trenton it can obtain a model from which it can make a
dollar that will not bring the blush of shame to the cheek of every
American who has to spend it.

Maj. Anderson’s eagle was shot in Hunterdon county, in this state. The
bird is one of the most rare in the country, and it is scarcely ever
even seen near the haunts of civilization. It is supposed that advanced
age had made this bird unable to successfully pursue and capture the
game of the wilderness, and that therefore it had ventured into settled
regions for tamer prey. It was found near a farmer’s barn, and the
farmer filled it full of lead from a shotgun and a revolver without
killing it, and finally captured it alive, having disabled it by wounds
in the wing. It was taken to the village station, and lived there on
exhibition a day or two before it died. It was then given to Maj.
Anderson, who had it stuffed and mounted, and guards it now with the
tenderness and pride of a young father. He has refused for it offers
running well into the hundreds of dollars.—Trenton Cor. New York Sun.

OOLOGY.

LaHoyt, Henry Co., Ia., Mch. 10, ’88.
Messrs. Webster & Mead.

_Dear Sirs_:—March number of the H. O. and O. at hand, and must say it
is a daisy. I am an oologist, and on January last I found a nest of the
great horned owl, with two fresh eggs, which is the earliest I ever knew
it to breed here. The nest was in an old snag, about ten feet from the
ground. The owl could be plainly seen and I could almost see the eggs
while standing on the ground. I had frequently noticed her on the snag,
but thought she was roosting there through the day. At the time I found
the nest, the snow was on an average of two feet deep. This is the
second nest of this species that I have ever found.

Red-tailed hawks are plenty here. I found eight nests in one season;
they nest here in February and June, raising two broods. They always use
the same nests each year unless they are disturbed. I once found a nest
in which they had only laid one egg, so I went away, leaving it until
they had finished the set. I visited the nest four days afterward, but
that egg was gone and they never used that nest again. I have never
found a nest yet of the red-tailed hawk but what it was in a tall tree,
and _always leaning_ over a ravine. They trouble the farmers’ fowls a
great deal, often killing the largest hens. I once set a steel trap by a
hen which they had killed and next morning I had the male.
Yours truly,
James C. Jay.

[Illustration: bicycle]

SUGGESTIONS FOR PROPERLY FORMING COLLECTIONS OF BIRDS’ EGGS.

If the identification has been effected only by obtaining a good view of
the birds, the fact should be stated thus: “Bird well seen,” “Bird
seen,” or “Bd. sn.,” as the case may be. For eggs not taken by the
collector himself, but brought in by natives, or persons not having a
knowledge of ornithology, the _local name_ or the _name applied by the
finder_ should _only_ be used, unless indeed it requires interpretation,
when the scientific name may be added, but _always within_ brackets
thus: “Toogle-aiah (_Squatarole helvetica_);” the necessary particulars
relating to the capture and identification being added. Eggs found by
the collector, and _not_ identified by him, but the origin of which he
has reason to think he knows, may be inscribed with the common English
name of the species to which he refers them; or if it has no
appellation, then the scientific name may be used, but in that case
_always with a note of interrogation_ (?) after it, _or else_ the words
“Not identified.” If the collector prefers it, many of these particulars
may be inscribed symbolically or in short-hand, but _never unless_ the
system used has previously been agreed upon with persons at home, and it
be known that they have a key to it. _Each specimen should bear an
inscription_; those from the same nest may be inscribed; but different
nests, especially of the same or nearly allied species, should never be
so marked that confusion can possibly arise. It is desirable to mark
temporarily with a _pencil_ each egg as it is obtained; but the
permanent inscription, which should always be ink, should be deferred
until after the egg has been emptied. The number terminating the
inscription in all cases referring to the page of the collector’s
note-book, wherein full details may be found, and the words or letters
preceding the number serving to distinguish between different
collectors, no two of whom ought to employ the same. (The initial letter
of the collector’s name, prefixed to the number, will often be
sufficient.)

PREPARATION OF SPECIMENS.

Eggs are emptied, with the least amount of trouble, at _one_ hole, which
should be drilled in the _side_ with an instrument called the egg-drill.
The hole should, of course, be proportioned to the size of the egg and
the amount of incubation it has undergone. Eggs that are hard sat upon
are more easily blown by being kept a few days, but the operation must
not be deferred, too long, or they are apt to burst violently
immediately upon being punctured, though this may be avoided by holding
them under water while the first incision is made. The hole being
drilled, the lining membrane should be cleared away from the orifice
with a small penknife, by which means not only is the removal of the
contents, but the subsequent cleansing of the specimen facilitated. The
small end of a blowpipe should then be introduced, while the other
extremity is applied to the mouth and blown through, _at first very
gently_. If the embryo is found to be moderately developed, a stream of
water should be introduced by means of a syringe, and the egg then
gently shaken, after which the blowpipe may again be resorted to, until
by the ultimate use of both instruments, aided by scissors, hooks,
knives and forceps, the contents are completely emptied. After this the
egg should be filled with water from the syringe, shaken, and blown out,
which process is to be repeated until its interior is completely
cleansed, when it should be laid upon a pad of blotting paper or fine
cloth, with the hole downwards, its position on the pad or cloth being
occasionally changed, until it is perfectly dry. During this time it
should be kept as much as possible from the light, especially from the
sunshine, as the colors are then more liable to fade than at any
subsequent time. In the case of very small eggs, when fresh, the
contents may be sucked out by means of a bulbed tube, and the interior
afterwards rinsed but as before. It is always advisable, as far as
possible, to avoid wetting the outside of the shell as the action of
water is apt to remove the “bloom,” affect the color, and in some cases
alter the crystalization of the shell. Consequently dirt stains or dung
spots should never be removed. While emptying the contents, it is well
to hold the egg over a basin of water, to avoid breakage in case of its
slipping from the fingers. Eggs that are very hard sat upon, of whatever
size they may be, should be treated in the manner detailed in
“Concluding Observations,” in next issue, which is a method superior to
any other known at present to the writer for preventing injury arising
to them. Should the yolk of the egg be dried up, a small portion of
_carbonate of soda_ may be introduced (but with great care that it does
not touch the outer surface of the shell, in which case the color is
likely to be affected) and then the egg filled with water from the
syringe, and left to stand a few hours with the hole uppermost, after
which the contents are found to be soluble and are easily removed by the
blowpipe, assisted by one of the hooks. It is almost unnecessary to add,
except for the benefit of beginners, that the manipulation of the
different instruments requires extreme caution, but a few trials will
give the collector the practice necessary for success. Those who may
still prefer to blow eggs by means of _two_ holes are _particularly
requested not to make them at the ends of the eggs, nor on opposite
sides_, but on the same side. In this case the hole nearest the smaller
end of the egg should be the smallest and the contents blown out at the
other. If the holes are made at the _ends_ of the eggs, it not only very
much injures their appearance as cabinet specimens, but also prevents
their exact dimensions from being ascertained accurately; and if they
are made at _opposite_ sides, the extent of the “show surface” is
thereby lessened.

[TO BE CONTINUED.]

THE HAWKEYE
ORNITHOLOGIST & OOLOGIST

EDITED AND PUBLISHED BY
E. B. WEBSTER, F. D. MEAD.
CRESCO, IOWA.

A MONTHLY MAGAZINE
DEVOTED TO ORNITHOLOGY,
KINDRED SUBJECTS,
AND GEOLOGY.

TERMS OF SUBSCRIPTION.

Per year, 50 cents
Per year to foreign countries, 65 cents
single copies, 5 cents

Remittances for subscriptions must be made by postal note—stamps will be
returned.

TERMS OF ADVERTISING.

1 line, 1 insertion, $ .10
1 inch, ” 1.00
2 inches, ” 1.75
½ column, ” 2.50
1 column, ” 5.00
1 page, ” 10.00

A large discount on standing ads. Special rates can sometimes be given.

General Agent.—Ph. Heinsberger, 181 Ludlow St., and 89 Delancy St., New
York.

All books, periodicals, specimens, etc., sent us will be reviewed.

Correspondence and items of interest relating to the several departments
solicited from all. All matter for publication must be in by the last of
each month in order to insure insertion in the next number.

Entered at the postoffice at Cresco, Iowa, as second class matter.

NOTES.

A neat appearing monthly devoted chiefly to philately, hails us from
Mexico, N. Y., under the somewhat peculiar name of “_Common Sense_;” F.
A. Thomas, editor. “May it live long and prosper.”

Mr. Oliver Davie has in preparation an article on the golden-crowned
thrush, which we expect to publish in a month or so. This is, in his
opinion, one of his best efforts, as the bird is an especial favorite
with him.

We notice that the _Bay State Oologist_ appears in an improved though
“condensed” form this month. Success.

Datas, 5x8, neatly printed, good paper, bound in lots of fifty, with
flexible cardboard covers, 50 cents each in exchange.

The _Calmar Exchange_, published by our friend S. C. Scott, of Calmar,
Iowa, comes to our table bright and fresh in its eight-page form and new
dress. Those interested in the subjects of which it treats will find it
an excellent paper at a small price.

Every person sending me 50 cents for one year’s subscription to the
Hawkeye Ornithologist and Oologist will receive free six varieties of
rare Iowa minerals, labeled. Send postal note.

James C. Jay.

LaHoyt, Henry Co., Iowa.

Among other fine specimens recently received from Messrs. Schindler &
Selover, of Lake City, Minn., was one of the large, showy eggs of the
Egyptian vulture, collected in Spain, which they are selling at the very
low price of $1.25 each. We can take pleasure in recommending this firm
as being thoroughly reliable, and as their rates are so extremely low,
we bespeak for them a most liberal patronage.

The last number of the _Collector’s Illustrated Magazine_, published by
E. M. Haight of Riverside, Calif., which, by the way, is our finest
exchange, contains, among its many valuable articles, the first
installment of a series on Vireos, by Wm. L. Kells, written in his
customary interesting manner; also fine articles on “Natural History” by
Chas. L. Mason; “Wonderful Mica” by J. J. Alton; and “The Cliff Dwellers
of Southwestern Colorado.”

Our readers will notice that in this issue we commence the publication
of a valuable article on Conchology, by J. A. Singley of Giddings,
Texas. If a person has a hobby, he generally rides it well; therefore we
make no hesitancy in saying that Mr. Singley’s article will prove of
much value and interest to the conchological student.

HOW’S THIS?

We would respectfully call the attention of the _Bay State Oologist_ to
the following:

Columbus, O., Nov. 17, 1888.

Webster & Mead,

_Gentlemen_:— * * * * *

* * I have —— copies left of the present edition (a copy of which I send
you by to-day’s mail) which you may have at —— per cent off.
* * *

Oliver Davie.

March 8, 1888.

Webster & Mead,

_Gentlemen_:— * * * *

I note what Mr. Foote says in regard to my “Nests and Eggs.” When I sent
you the —— copies they were all I had in stock—at least I thought so,
for it was all I could find in the closet where I kept them. In turning
over a large number of ornithological books for reference, I found a
package of eight copies, one of which I sent Mr. Foote and quoted
prices, but he did not take them and I sent them to Mr. Lattin who was
entirely out of them and wanted them and 500 more if he could get them
at once. Mr. Foote has not _purchased a single copy of the work from me.
I now am entirely out until the third_ edition appears. I have notified
Mr. Foote to that effect. * * *

Yours truly,
Oliver Davie.

Mr. Foote’s article, which you have probably all seen, was decidedly
ungentlemanly, to say the least.

MIGRATION NOTES.

BERNADOTTE, ILLINOIS.

BY DR. W. S. STRODE.

NAME FIRST NO. NEXT WHEN
SEEN SEEN SEEN COM.

Cedar Waxwing 2-3 2
B.-throated Bunting 2-5 7 2-13
Am. R.-legged Hawk 2-7 2
Red-tailed ” 2-7 1
Mourning Dove[1] 2-11 1
Wild Geese 2-18 7
Bluebirds 2-19 23 3-5
Brown Creeper[2] 2-26 1
Ducks—on river 3-1
Robin 3-11 1 3-11
Killdeer 3-1 3
Ducks—Old Squaw 3-3 11
Flicker 3-3 1
Red-w. Blackbird 3-4 12
Meadow Lark 3-8 3
Cooper’s Hawk 3-11 2
Pileated Woodpecker 3-14 2
Purple Grackle 3-15 7
Phoebe 3-18 1 3-19
Am. Sheldrake[3] 3-18
Sparrow Hawk 3-19 3
House Wren 3-19 2

[1]In company with a large number of Juncas and Song Sparrows; and near
some straw sheds had probably been left during the fall migration.

[2]Found dead at foot of a tree, in very poor condition.

[3]Numerous on the river; a friend shot three.

Great-horned Owl—found first nest February 8, containing three eggs.

Red-tailed Hawk—took first eggs, 1/2, on March 3.

Crows—counted 206 flying northwest to roost eight miles away, on March
5; on the 17th found new and finished nest.

I have made no mention of our winter residents, such as Junco, B. C.
Chickadee, Tufted Titmouse, Song Sparrow, Am. Goldfinch, Crows, Jays,
Hairy, Downy and Red-bellied Woodpeckers, Cardinals, etc., for scarcely
a day of the period covered by this record has passed in which I have
not observed more or less of all of them; and also have seen nearly
every day, in my twenty to forty miles ride, more or less of some of the
following more rare permanent residents: Great Horned, Barred and
Screech owls, Am. Rough-legged and Red-tailed Hawks, Prairie Hens,
Ruffed Grouse and Bobwhite, and occasionally a wild Turkey would cross
my path.

CRESCO, IOWA.

Downy Woodpecker 2-23 1 3-4
Horned Lark 2-23 7 3-4
W.-breasted Nuthatch 3-5
Red Crossbill 3-2 1
Red-h. Woodpecker 3-3 1
Bluebird 3-15 1 3-18
Chipping Sparrow 3-15 2 3-16
Robin 3-16 2 3-17
Red-tailed Hawk 3-17 1 3-18
Pewee 3-17 1

MEDINA, N. Y.

BY N. F. POSSON.

Snow Bunting 1-1
Am. Robin 1-1
Black-c. Chickadee 1-4
White-b. Nuthatch 1-7
Brown Creeper 1-7
Downy Woodpecker 1-7
Hairy ” 1-7
Red-h. ” 1-7
Shore Lark 1-28
Gt. Northern Shrike 2-2
Bluebird 2-24
Pine Grosbeak 2-25

CHICAGO.

BY W. E. PRATT.

Am. Herring Gull[4] 2-4 20 2-5 2-4
Hooded Sheldrake 2-18 4
Red Crossbill 2-18 2
White-r. Shrike 2-18 1
Shore Lark 2-18 100 2-22 2-18
Bluebird 2-22 12[5] 2-23
Sparrow Hawk? 2-22 4
Red-tailed ” 2-22 1

[4]A winter resident here when the lake (Michigan) is free of ice.

[5]All males.

The Red-breasted Sheldrake and Black-capped Chickadee, winter residents,
were also observed.

Those interested in bird migration will, we hope, read our “Notes” with
interest. We wish to thank those who forwarded reports for their aid;
and would be pleased to receive reports from all. Those wishing to aid
us in this department and sending us their address will have the
necessary blanks sent them.

Our home reports are meager, owing to the extreme lateness of spring.

To secure insertion, the reports should be sent not later than the 15th
of each month.

CONCHOLOGY.

For The Hawkeye O. and O.
HOW TO COLLECT AND PREPARE CONCHOLOGICAL SPECIMENS.

BY J. A. SINGLEY.

The editors having given me permission to ride my “hobby,” I intend to
give brief but full instructions on the above as well as make a few
remarks on matters connected with a collection. There are many
collectors who can profit by what I write, but these notes are intended
mainly for the class to which I belonged about 23 years ago, _i. e._:
the young collector and the beginner. Had I had these instructions then
it would have saved me many a false step aside from doing some things
that, while not very serious mistakes, might be called “verdant.”

I want, in the first place, to point out the advantages of collecting
shells. Collecting can be done all the year round in many localities;
and on the sea-shore there is no intermission. There is no climbing of
trees as in egg collecting, and no danger of broken bones. Shells are
not easily broken, are much handsomer than eggs; and, best of all, a
shell always carries its name about with it, while you must take your
correspondent’s word for the egg. And tho’ some oologists profess to be
able to identify a species by the egg alone, I am bound to say that
after several years of professional collecting in oology, that in the
majority of cases a species can _not_ be determined from the eggs.

The first thing a collector thinks of when a species of any kind is
obtained is the identifying or determination. The Smithsonian
Institution at Washington, D. C., or the Academy of Natural Sciences at
Philadelphia, Pa., will always determine specimens sent them for that
purpose. In sending out specimens for naming be generous. Send all that
you can spare—and perfect specimens too, as it is impossible to make a
positive determination from weathered, worn or broken specimens. Don’t
ask that the specimens be returned to you, but present them to the
institutions or individuals to whom you sent them for naming. Besides
the institutions named above there are many of our prominent naturalists
who make a specialty of conchology and will name any specimens sent to
them for determination. One thing I wish to warn the beginner against is
submitting his collections to an amateur and depending on his labeling.
This was one of the “verdant” things of which I was guilty.

The beginner in land and freshwater shells will probably vote such a
pursuit as “slow” when he first commences. After making a few exchanges
and seeing the diversity of form, color, and sculpturing, he will become
interested and begin making comparisons. He is then on the right road to
knowledge, and as he adds species after species to his collection from
land, river, or lake and sea, the hobby will grow on him and it will not
be dropped when entering a business life as is the case with postage
stamps and eggs, but the collection will be kept up and give many an
hour’s recreation when worried with the cares of life.

Another advantage of such a collection is that you don’t offend those
æsthetic people who are horrified at the idea of collecting birds and
eggs and give us “fits” for “murdering” and “robbing” the poor birds. To
tell the truth, after years of collecting and becoming “hardened” to it
a guilty feeling sometimes comes over me when taking a set of eggs.

[TO BE CONTINUED.]

MINERALOGY.

For The Hawkeye O. and O.
THE SCIENTIST.

BY H. F. HEGNER, DECORAH, IOWA.

But now he stands upon the sandy beach with the breakers in sight, his
eyes attracted to the sea weeds and pearly shells at his feet. He is
interested, and examines them carefully. Some of the shells he finds
inhabited, and, as he is a naturalist, is soon acquainted with each
specific form, and has a learned name for it. But he also finds a real
architect in the delicate tinted coral branches at his feet. Around the
head and mouth of this little creature, serving as arms for obtaining
food, he finds a number of tentacles. “Nature has given you a goodly
work to do, little architect,” cries the naturalist, “and these
tentacles are well adapted to your animal wants. _Polypus_ is many
armed, and henceforth, most scientifically, your name shall be polyp!”

And then he begins a pleasing study. Zoophytes he finds everywhere,
spreading their beautiful architectural works along the continental
borders.

He crosses the stormy Atlantic, weighing the mighty power that drives
the storm. On, on through the quiet Indian ocean, the phosphorescent
Indian ocean, naming and collecting myriad living forms, until he
reaches the beautiful Polynesia, where, spread out in the tropical sun
are the coral reefs—monuments of submerged islands—with an epitaph to
the departed written in living characters around each placid lagoon.

The scientist, though, can read and understand; it is not beyond his
conception; and bringing together these epitaphs, he forms a perfect
image of those submerged lands. Vegetation and animalization, well
defined, are as clear in his imagination as though, even now, the white
sunlight were reflected from those ancient islands, forming a perfect
image on the retina.

He studies hard, and his conclusions, builded on the material laws of
nature, are reliable; and now he returns to civilization honored and
respected, bringing the material of his researches to the civilized
world.

There are other phenomena tho’, fully as grand as coral islands and
polyps, and he is soon in the field of work again. The gallant ship
carries him through the wintry northern seas, with their ice mountains
towering beneath an enfeebled sun, to the realms of perpetual snow. Past
Greenland’s milky glaciers that feed the Arctic main with ice mountains.
Past the struggling crater of Mount Hecla, where, bound by the king of
these ultimate realms, the Fire Demon struggles to be free, groaning out
the essence of wrath from his fiery nostril in moulten rivers that are
petrified by the rigid Ice King, and added to the adamantine chains with
which he is bound; on, on to the north through a world of icebergs that
moan and groan as though they were fettered in this desolate waste of
frozen sea, to bar the explorer from the frosty Ice King’s ultimate
throne, the North Pole. But no; the scientific mind knows no defeat, and
he toils on over the icy fields, while the sun, aweary with his long
vigil, sinks further and further in the horizon, as though he could no
longer banish the sleep from his eyes, when lo!—an open Polar sea
stretches away to the northward, breaking against a rocky, mountainous
coast.

Filled with the joy of first discovery, the scientist voices the
language of his soul in one grand apostrophe: “Oh restless Polar sea,
that breaks upon this rock-bound coast, and spreads away, I know not
where, e’en as Eternity, had I but my gallant ship, I’d sail thy tossing
main!”

Sadly he toils back to the south, and none to soon. Creaking and roaring
the massive icebergs among, on comes the tempest, and the scientist is
thankful for the much needed shelter. The sun, too, has deserted him,
and the grand aurora borealis, like a flaming sword above the lost Eden,
seems to guard the Arctic realms, while sparkling gems glitter on each
icy pinnacle.

The Arctic winter, which but for the aurora borealis would be black as
the inkiest night, passes slowly away. Oh, how cold and gloomy it is!
How the explorer struggles and struggles with the rigid Ice King,
eagerly waiting for the departed sun to return and rescue him, and at
last his anxious watch is rewarded. The east puts on the blush of
modesty, a sure prophesy of his majesty’s return, and immediately his
welcome face appears. As he comes up the way, the icebergs part to let
him pass, and the gallant ship, freed from her rigid chains, sails
onward to the south.

Thus, even thus it is that the scientist toils on and on in a masterly
search for truth. Is it for glory or wealth that he dares this? No; the
luxuries of civilization are even like contagion in his estimation, and
with a Stoical spirit that is grand, he leads a purely intellectual
life, drawing from Nature her richest treasures which she is only too
glad to give. His wisdom is like a rich soil in which the seeds of
knowledge and virtue germinate. He is a lover of truth, and in Nature he
finds his ideal.

Natural phenomena become beautified before his studious mind, and the
lower animal forms teach him objective lessons of wisdom, that, by their
very simplicity, are deeply impressed on his memory.

Even in the profound laws of chemistry and astronomy he finds a beauty
that is irresistable and studies them until he develops a giant
intellect. He can see beauty in truth; he can see truth in Nature; and
Nature becomes his inspiration.

For The Hawkeye O. and O.
CARE OF MINERALS.

BY W. S. BEEKMAN.

There seems to be difficulty in realizing a progress that is not in some
manner dependant upon care. Care is exemplified at our several points of
observation in the universe, and is realized in all things capable of
advancement. Ourselves require care. Care for health, system,
surroundings, character, and appearance. Among some of the many things,
where, in its advancement, care greatly tends to produce a degree of
perfection, equal to the amount bestowed, may be mentioned the various
forms of accumulating objects for advancement. Among these forms, it
will serve us at present to consider only that which has for its
object-matter the accumulation of the natural chemical bodies for
mineralogical study. Every one admires a prettily arranged series of
rocks, and in our efforts to please both visual and intellectual senses,
ever bear in mind that the direct results to be obtained are ever
dependent upon the genuineness of the care bestowed.

Minerals are as much under the necessity of receiving care as is the
delicate skin of an infant. Those hard and popularly considered
imperishable bodies we do not exempt from the rulings of _care_ as one
would suppose. It is the first impulse that much govern our actions
while working our specimens of the bed-rock. Specimens must be broken
from their homes as carefully as one would exhume a mummy. Hammer and
chisel must be deftly applied to the mother-rock, giving a nip here and
a whack there, making every blow tell. After securing the specimen
carefully protect all its friable or delicate parts. This can be done in
many ways; often in emergencies where one does not care to utilize their
handkerchiefs, a handful of grass applied to a projecting crystal will
insure its safety while trimming for cabinet use.

Before trimming your specimen very much, consider carefully all the
objectionable parts you wish to remove. As in a game of chess—you must
know the positions and the effects of every move. Many times one will in
a hurry glance over a rock and say: “Well, now, if that was trimmed
about so it would be a good thing.” Whack goes the hammer, and crumble
goes the specimen. Failing to see that there was a weak place of partial
fracture of the rock, which, had it been seen, could have been
protected, the specimen is destroyed, owing to the lack of care. In
trimming a specimen consider what you want saved and what will be better
off than on. See how it can be best shaped so as to stand easily and
show what is to be admired mostly. In many instances applying the chisel
to the surface in directing cleaveage planes will facilitate the
improvement of the mineral at a less expense of battered material. A
hard compact rock may be more easily broken by striking the stone while
held in the hand, first protecting the hand by an old glove, than when
laid on a hard surface. Where a stone is known to be quickly broken into
fragments it may be found well to wrap the stone in stout paper, or
cloth, before pounding. In this way the smaller fragments are easily
obtained. Always trimming your specimens at the quarry your next
attention should be the wrapping of each individual in soft paper,
previous to being carried home.

[TO BE CONTINUED.]