By D
APPLETON AND COMPANY.
LIST OF ILLUSTRATIONS.
FULL-PAGE PLATES.
TO FACE PAGE BOB-WHITE COLOR CHART Frontispiece. 39 • CLAPPER RAIL PIED-BILLED GREBE AND YOUNG HEADS OF DUCKS LITTLE BLUE HERONS WOODCOCK AND YOUNG 57 97 135 140 153 SPOTTED SANDPIPER AND YOUNG 169 RUFFED GROUSE AND YOUNG 181 • SPARROW HAWK AND YOUNG 211 HAIRY WOODPECKER; YELLOW-BELLIED SAPSUCKER 229 • WHIP-POOR-WILL 237 • BOBOLINK.
LEAST FLYCATCHER; PHEBE MEADOWLARK WHITE-THROATED SPARROW; WHITE-CROWNED SPARROW SONG SPARROW; SWAMP SPARROW YELLOW-THROATED VIREO; WARBLING VIREO LOUISIANA WATER-THRUSH WOOD THRUSH; WILSON'S THRUSH. 245 262 265 300 306 330 368 • 395 FIGURES IN THE TEXT.
FIGURE PAGE 1. A completed birdskin 28 2. Topography of a bird 33 3. (a) Spotted, (b) streaked, (c) barred, (d) margined feathers 34 4. Rule showing inches and tenths 37 5. Feet of (a) Pied-billed Grebe, (b) Loon, (c) Puffin 41 • 6. (a) Bill of Parasitic Jaeger; (b) bill and foot of Laughing Gull 41 7. Bill of Common Tern 8. Bill of Skimmer LIST OF ILLUSTRATIONS.
FIGURE 9. (a) Bill and foot of Black-footed Albatross; (b) bill and foot of Fulmar . 10. Foot of Cormorant 11. Bill of Yellow-billed Tropic Bird PAGE 42 43 43 . • 12. Bill of Gannet • 43 • 13. Bill of Anhinga 43 14. Bill of Cormorant 43 15. Bill of Man-o'-War Bird 43 • 16. Bill of Merganser 44 • 17. (a) Bill and foot of Mallard; (b) foot of Canvasback 44 . 18. Bill of Flamingo 45 . 19. Bill and toe-nail of Little Green Heron 45 20. Bill of White Ibis 45 21. Bill of Roseate Spoonbill 45 22. (a) Bill and foot of Clapper Rail: bills of (6) Yellow Rail, (c) Sora, (d) Florida Gallinule; (e) bill and foot of Coot 46 23. Bill of Sandhill Crane 46 24. Bill of Limpkin. 46 25. Bills of (a) Dowitcher, (b) Knot, (c) Black-bellied. Plover, (d) Semipalmated Plover 47 26. Feet of (a) Red Phalarope, (b) Knot, (c) Dowitcher, (d) Blackbellied Plover, (e) Semipalmated Plover 47 • 27. Bill of Ruffed Grouse 48 28. Bill of Wild Pigeon. 48 • 29. Feet of (a) Barred Owl, (b) Red-shouldered Hawk 48 30. Head of Barn Owl 48 31. Head of Barred Owl. 48 . 32. Head of Turkey Vulture 33. Head of Red-shouldered Hawk 34. Bill and foot of Carolina Paroquet 35. Bill and foot of Belted Kingfisher 36. Bill and foot of Yellow-billed Cuckoo 37. (a) Bill and foot of Hairy Woodpecker, (b) foot of Arctic Three-toed Woodpecker 38. Bill and foot of Nighthawk 39. Bill and tail-feather of Chimney Swift 40. Bill of Hummingbird 41. Foot of Robin 42. Bill and wing of Phœbe 43. Bill and hind-toe of Horned Lark 44. (a) Bill and wing of Blue Jay, (b) bill of Crow 45. Bill and wing of Starling 49 . . 49 . 49 • 49 • 49 50 50 50 50 • . 51 . .
LIST OF ILLUSTRATIONS.
PAGE FIGURE 46. (a) Bill and wing of Baltimore Oriole; bills of (b) Meadowlark, (c) Purple Grackle 52 . 47. Bills of (a) Cardinal, (b) Pine Grosbeak, (c) Purple Finch, (d) Red Crossbill, (e) Seaside Finch, (f) Goldfinch 52 48. Bill of Scarlet Tanager 52 . 49. Bill and foot of Cliff Swallow 53 . 50. Head of Cedar Waxwing 53 . 51. Bill of Loggerhead Shrike 53 52. Bill of Blue-headed Vireo 53 53. (a) Bill of Tennessee Warbler; (b) bill, wing, and hind-toe of Pine Warbler; bills of (c) Redstart, (d) Water-Thrush; (e) Chat. 53 54. Bill and hind-toe of American Pipit 54 55. (a) Bill of Brown Thrasher, (b) bill and wing of Catbird; bills of (c) Carolina Wren, (d) House Wren. 54 56. Bill and tail of Brown Creeper. 54 57. (a) Bill of White-breasted Nuthatch, (b) bill and wing of Chickadee 55 58. (a) Bill and wing of Golden-crowned Kinglet, (b) bill of Blue Gray Gnatcatcher. 55 59. (a) Bill of Robin, (b) bill and wing of Bluebird 60. First primaries of (a) American Herring Gull, (b) Ring-billed Gull, (c) Laughing Gull, (d) Franklin's Gull, (e) Bonaparte's Gull 61. First primaries of (a) Caspian Tern, (b) Royal Tern, (c) Common Tern, (d) Arctic Tern, (e) Royal Tern • 55 69 78 62. Head of Least Sandpiper. 160 63. Head of Red-backed Sandpiper 161 64. Wing of Solitary Sandpiper 166 65. Head of Semipalmated Plover 174 . 66. Head of Wilson's Plover 176 . . 67. Tail of Sharp-shinned Hawk 198 • 68. Tail of Cooper's Hawk 199 69. Primaries of Red-shouldered Hawk. 202 70. Primaries of Broad-winged Hawk 204 . . 71. Foot of Golden Eagle 206 72. Foot of Bald Eagle 207 73. Tail-feathers of Yellow-billed Cuckoo 225 74. Tail-feathers of Black-billed Cuckoo 226 75. Head of Crested Flycatcher 76. Head of Prairie Horned Lark 77. Head of Cowbird LIST OF ILLUSTRATIONS.
FIGURE 78. Head of Orchard Oriole PAGE • 267 79. Head of Purple Finch 281 80. Head of Redpoll 285 81. Hind-toe of Lapland Longspur 289 82. Tail-feathers of Vesper Sparrow . 290 83. Tail of Grasshopper Sparrow 293 88. Head of Dickcissel 91. Head of Red-eyed Vireo • 92. Wing of Warbling Vireo • 93. Head of Black and White Warbler 94. Head of Worm-eating Warbler 95. Head of Blue-winged Warbler. 96. Head of Golden-winged Warbler 97. Head of Parula Warbler 98. Head of Myrtle Warbler 99. Head of Magnolia Warbler 100. Head of Chestnut-sided Warbler • . 101. Black-throated Blue Warbler 102. Head of Black-poll Warbler 103. Head of Prairie Warbler 104. Head of Oven-bird • 105. Head of Kentucky Warbler . 106. Head of Maryland Yellow-throat 107. Head of Wilson's Warbler 108. Head of Hooded Warbler. 109. Head of Canadian Warbler 110. Head of Yellow-breasted Chat 111. Head of Short-billed Marsh Wren 84. Head of Seaside Sparrow. 85. Head of Lark Sparrow 86. Head of Chipping Sparrow 87. Head of Fox Sparrow 89. Barn, Cliff, Tree, and Bank Swallows 90. Section of primary of Rough-winged Swallow 297 299 • 302 309 315 318 323 . 328 • 329 . 351 . 351 351 • 351 • 351 • 351 351 • 351 354 366 366 366 366 366 366 . 366 • 366 372 383 112. Head of Long-billed Marsh Wren 113. Head of Red-breasted Nuthatch 114. Head of Tufted Titmouse. 115. Head of Golden-crowned Kinglet 384 E.Thompson.
BOB-WHITE Title COLLECTING NESTS AND EGGS.
A collection of birds' nests is a telling object lesson in the study of ornithology. Familiar as I am with them, I never see the nests of some birds without feeling the most intense admiration for the marvelous skill which has aided them in forming a structure man would find it difficult, if not impossible, to duplicate. A bird's nest in its original site is a concrete expression of the intelligence of its maker; for the foresight displayed in the choice of a situation, and the ingenuity shown in the construction of the nest, even if largely instinctive now , originated in the intelligence of a line of ancestors. Nests may be collected before they have been used, when the birds will generally build again; or you may wait and take them after the birds have left them, labeling each nest with what you have learned of the history of its owners. For example: Time required for its construction; whether made by one or both sexes; notes on the laying of the eggs; period of incubation; whether both sexes assisted in incubation; care of the young; number of days they were in the nest, etc. Some nests, for example the pendent "baskets" of Vireos or such as are placed in crotches, should be taken with the crotch or branch to which they are attached.
With others it is obviously impossible to do this. They should therefore be placed in a frame of wire and wrapped about with fine wire thread. To make this frame, twist two pieces of annealed wire, painted brown, into the shape of a letter X. About midway from the point of intersection and the end of the arm, bend the wires upward at right angles. Now take the fine hair or thread wire and wind it about the four horizontal arms of the frame until its bottom looks like a spider's web; place the nest in this half-formed basket, bend the upright wires inward or outward as the case requires, and continue winding until the nest is bound firmly. The size of the frame and the wire used in its construction may be varied to suit the nest. PLAN OF THE WORK.