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THE BIRDS
OF ALBANY COUNTY

This Edition is the First
and is Limited to Three
Hundred Copies. This Copy

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YELLOW-BREASTED CHAT

PrAan I

THE) BIRDS

OF

ALBANY COUNTY)

A CATALOGUE OF THE SPECIES
RECORDED IN THIS VICINITY, WITH
NOTES ON THEIR LIVES AND
HABITS, AND BRIEF FIELD-MARKS
FOR AID IN IDENTIFICATION

BY

WILBUR WEBSTER JUDD

Containing One Plate from a Water-color by William
S. Barkentin; Ten Plates from Pen and Ink
Drawings by George Louis Richard,
and Eleven Half-tones from
Photographs

ALBANY, NEW YORK
NINETEEN HUNDRED AND SEVEN

Cie,

‘ARIES

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RoBIN ON NEST

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To My Cousin
Josephine Webster Allerton

This Book is Dedicated

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ACKNOWLEDGMENTS

WISH to express my sincere thanks to all those who in any
| way have assisted me in the preparation of this book, as
follows: To George L. and William C. Richard, masters
of woodcraft, my frequent companions in the field, for much
valuable information; to Dr. John M. Clarke, State Geologist,
for granting exceptional privileges in the State Museum,
Albany; to John A. McCarthy, editor of the Albany
Sunday Press in which much of the matter in the book
first appeared, for advice and encouragement; to H. A. Slack,
for valuable information; to George H. Chadwick, professor
of geology at St. Lawrence University, formerly zoologist at
the State Museum, Albany, for a unique suggestion; to two
women bird observers who wish their names omitted, Henry
H. Valentine, and others, for notes; and last, but not least, to

the many subscribers who made this book possible.

WiLson’s THRUSH, Nest AND EGGs

PLaTE III

CONTENTS

Paraer ay UES PEA TIGIES 15) 0/22 Wiss doi ccare ask eldeara coin b Oh ane aes

MATEUS Fc Ne G AE GANS ied ty ch ete atsavtene cue ed
EE ed SNE SOT BY Ds AC RRR SC ge Ge
ORDER PASSERES: Perching Birds..............
Family Turdide: Thrushes, Bluebirds, etc.......
Family Sylviide: Kinglets, etc...............
Family Paride: Nuthatches and Titmice........
Family Certhuda: ‘Creepers 6 03.)..000 8 0c ee ce
Family Troglodytide: Thrashers, Wrens, etc.....
Family Mnhiotiltide: Wood Warblers..........
Family Vireonides: Vireos i oc sac ccce ieee wie oe ocd
Fiamaly Uiantidas + Sires oie). sie Se sao. oh ae dosnt
Family Ampelide: Waxwings...............
Family Hirundinide: Swallows...............
Pouy>lanagridc: Panagers:. 105.063 oe aie se 5 8
Family Tringillidee: Finches, Sparrows, etc......
Family Icteridee: Blackbirds, Orioles, etc........
Family Corvide: Crows and Jays.............
Paaaly, Pugs: Parks. oes ccve aus aaa aes 8
Family Tyrannide: Flycatchers..............

ORDER MACROCHIRES: Goatsuckers, Hummingbirds,

ULL Sie MINA Da SA Pe aD Hy AE
Family Trochilide: Hummingbirds............
Family Micropodide: Swifts.................

Family Caprimulgide: Nighthawks, Whip-poor-

WOE ER Uh) tds inca belly bc RR VEAL
ORDER Pict: Woodpeckers, etc..............-.
Family Picidee: Woodpeckers................

BE

12 CONTENTS

PAGE
ORDER CoccyGEs: Cuckoos, Kingfishers, etc...... 120
Family Alcedinide: Kingfishers............... 120
Family Cuculide: Cuckoos.................. 122
ORDER RaptTores: Birds of Prey.............. 123
Family Bubonide: Horned Owls, Hoot Owls, ete. 123
Family Strigide: Barn Owls...............-. 126
Family Falconide: Falcons, Hawks, Eagles, etc.. 127
ORDER COLUMB#: Pigeons and Doves.......... 135
Family Columbide: Pigeons and Doves......... 135
ORDER GALLINZ: Gallinaceous Birds........... 137
Family Tetraonide: Grouse, Bob-whites, etc..... 137
ORDER LIMICOL#: Shore Birds................ 141
Family Charadridz: Plovers................ 141
Family Scolopacide: Snipes, Sandpipers, etc... .. 142
ORDER PALUDICOLE: Coots, Rails, etc.......... 148
Family Rallide: Rails, Coots, etc............. 148
ORDER HERODIONES: Herons, Bitterns, etc........ 150
Family Ardeidee: Herons, Bitterns, etc......... 150
ORDER ANSERES: Lamellirostral Swimmers........ 154
Family Anatide: Ducks, Geese, etc........... 154
ORDER LONGIPENNES: Long-winged Swimmers.... 159
Family Laride: Gulls and Terns.............. 159
ORDER PycopopEs: Diving Birds.............. 161
Family Alcidee: Murres, etc..........-..-2-- 161
Family | Gavides:) Loans) 2 62)3.3. 5 elec cee ss Bee 161
Family Podicipidee: Grebes..............-05. 162
Birds. of ‘Washington (Park .s)32) obs decals ace 164
haypothetical Lust ie ie) vomct nae aan Wea allele en ti 166
Systematics Qable (iy suena ee eater ie eee Meters 167

bbe (ee. ARAN LE AGRE EM MOAR DER ANH ea QO A A) 171

LIST OF ILLUSTRATIONS

FACING PAGE

Plate I. Yellow-breasted Chat. . (frontispiece)
Plate II. PR ive Gib Heese) a) sociales ial a's) A aca eles 6
Plate III. Wilson’s Thrush, nest and eggs... . 10
Plate IV. Golden-crowned Kinglet; Winter

TN SURI Yaa ina: LORS TNE a 16
Plate V. Cerulean Warbler; Magnolia War-

ILS WN late Bias WUsaa G voicatae aft 32
Plate VI. Chickadee feeding her young...... 36
Plate VII. House Wren with spider......... As
Plate VIII. Leggerhedd' Shrike). 3.6). oe) alee) « 48
Plate IX. AT ERIE NCS YAR UAE LUTON Rae 64
Plate X. Prairie Horned Lark............ 68
Plate XI. Yellow-billed Cuckoo ........... 76
Plate XII. Female Ruby-throated Hummingbird

on nest; Young Kingbirds...... 80
Plate XIII. Nest and eggs of Red-eyed Vireo. .. 96
Plate XIV. Rose-breasted Grosbeak ......... 100
Plate XV. Voune | Manptskers (0.5 ue asc veel. 108
Plate XVI. Woodeaek iia eau aU a Weert 112
Plate XVII. Red-shouldered Hawk .......... 128
Pilate So VItL. | Banned) Ow slite ately Uinta aad rt bt 132
Plate XIX. Green Herons and nest........... 140
Plate XX. Spotted: SaMGDIDER! (6) (l/s es als wishes 144
Plate XXI. American Golden-eye ........... 165

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EXPLANATORY
M UCH of the material in this book was written originally

as a newspaper serial and was therefore designed to
appeal to the general public. In rounding it into shape
for a book, supplying the necessary addenda and making much
needed revision, the author has still made every effort to avoid
as much as possible the use of technical terms, at the same time
trying in popular language to be scientifically exact.
Nevertheless it has been impossible to avoid certain expressions
which are probably unfamiliar to those not acquainted with
bird-lore. If the notes and sketches herein shall in any degree
entertain the reader and lead him to desire a more intimate
knowledge of the birds of this County, it is advised that the
book be used in conjunction with an ornithological work in
which the author has gone more deeply into technicalities.
The Field-marks are, in the main, but mere outlines of the
birds as we see them in the open, the descriptions of the
plumages applying solely to the male in the breeding season
except where otherwise indicated; closer analyses of the birds
of the East have been prepared and are readily available.
Attention is particularly called to the scale of measurement
in the plates made from Mr. Richard’s drawings. This is
found in the flourish line underneath the artist’s initials, which
15

16 EXPLANATORY

in every instance represents one inch in relation to the size of
the bird. The numerals which follow the scientific name of
the species represent the length of the bird from the tip of the
bill to the end of the tail when stretched out on the
taxidermist’s table; but when it is considered that individuals
of the same species often differ considerably in length, and that
when the bird is in motion its spinal column is curved, thus
rendering it shorter, these figures will not be taken too seriously
as aids to field work. However, to the entirely unsophisticated,
they may serve to show that a Hummingbird is smaller than a
Great Blue Heron.

The drawings were made from mounted models, which in
several instances were prepared especially for this purpose.
The photographs were made in the field by an expert.

GOLDEN-CROWNED KINGLET

WINTER WREN

PrArE <lV

INTRODUCTION
HE Valley of the Hudson is one of the

Grmaep ) on is one
x greatest highways for bird migration on
I?) the continent. It is the natural roadway

to the breeding grounds in the Adirondacks,
: northern New England, and Canada for the
majority of the species that come up from the South along the
Atlantic sea coast, or those that pass over the Alleghanian range
in Virginia, Maryland or Pennsylvania and take to the eastern
route. A number of birds remain in the lower Hudson Valley
to build their nests and rear their young, but after all available
records have been gone over, it appears that one hundred and
ninety-five birds reach Albany County, to which may be added
a hypothetical list of fourteen County visitants. Many of these
pause here but a short time and then respond to the irresistible
Call, but a considerable number remain with us through the
better part of the Summer, and breed.

The homing of the birds begins early in the Spring. Then,
when March or April winds are singing plaintive melodies
through the bare branches of the elms and maples, and in the
dark hill recesses and on whitened uplands we seem almost to
hear the mystical sounds of green buds swelling and the
upward gush of hidden springs, listening ears can catch the
welcome notes of Bluebird, Robin, Song Sparrow, Red-winged
17

18 INTRODUCTION

Blackbird, and others of the hardy troop that face the rigors
of this early season. About the time the first cluster of pale
blue Hepatica blossoms is found nestling among the brown
leaves, a number of birds have appeared, and we ask ourselves
the question, What impulse brings the birds home again?

We are face to face, now, with the great world-problem
of bird migration. But there is no answer, that we know,
under the azure dome of our April heaven. Various theories
have been advanced by learned ornithologists of Europe and
America, but it is generally acknowledged that none of them
has found the right key, and the door to the mystery still
remains unlocked. It is not the purpose of this work to
enter upon this discussion, or even to summarize the theories
already presented; but as all mysteries have their charm, and
the riddle of bird migration is one of the most alluring of
them all, it seems not out of place to call the reader’s attention
to the movement of the birds, which, twice a year, goes on
about us.

In May come the Warblers (Mniotitide), the daintiest,
brightest colored, and the least known family of birds. They
move in ‘waves, or companies, often composed of several
hundred individuals and a number of species. ‘The gentle
slopes of the Hudson Valley in this part of the State, where
small woods and second growth abound, and especially the
little ravines that are found here and there, north and south of
Albany, are well adapted to the Warblers. I speak of the
Mniotiltide as being the least known family of birds; by
this I mean that Farmer Babcock, or the Dweller in Cities,
may never have seen or heard of them, but the careful bird

student knows them and appreciates their beauty.

INTRODUCTION 19

By the first of June all the birds have arrived, those that
breed farther north have passed on and our own Summer
birds are absorbed with nesting cares. In midsummer the
birds are less active and sing little, but by the first of September
the southward migration has begun. The Fall migration is
not so conspicuous as that of Spring, as we already have birds
with us, the arrivals from the North are more silent, and the
local birds slip off quietly on the southern journey.

I might have begun this book by announcing to the
unsophisticated reader that the avifauna of eastern North
America is divided into seventeen Orders; that thirteen Orders
are represented in Albany County; that several of these
Orders are divided and subdivided into many Families; that
the Order Passeres is the largest, and includes perching birds;
that the Order Raptores includes the birds of prey, such as
the eagles, hawks, owls, etc.; that in the Order Macrochires is
found the apparently strange circumstance of the diminutive
Hummingbird and somewhat grotesque Nighthawk and Whip-
poor-will, classed together; that the Order Pici contains
the woodpeckers, and so on; but what would be the use?
If I did so you would probably picture me as an etiolated old
gentleman with but a wisp of hair left on his cranium, with
lean shanks in dilapidated pantaloons, and surrounded by a
formidable array of dried specimens, and books of learned
appearance.

The musician must first master technique before he can
secure the finest artistic effects, but not so with the ornithologist,
or the bird student. Once upon a time the museum specimen
and the book came first, but not so with the present generation.

We go immediately to the fields and are greeted at once by the

20 INTRODUCTION

bird chorus in full voice; we loaf in sylvan byways, or linger
where the lush grass grows most luxuriantly by the water’s
edge; perhaps we throw ourselves down in some June meadow
where the daisies lie like sheets of snow, or mayhap we pull
ourselves up some mountain side midst ferns and moss-covered
rocks; but we certainly avoid the museum until we have
caught at least a glimpse of the soul of ornithology. And it
has a soul, well-defined, clear, and distinct, but not until we
have felt it do we really know what it means to be abroad
with the birds.

The average city-bred person is a savage in the bird world.
And as the savage would probably not exactly understand or
appreciate the complexities of a great chorus from one of
Mendelssohn’s or Handel’s oratorios, so he who goes forth
from the city for the first time to listen to and know the birds
is apt to be overwhelmed by their numbers and the variety of
their notes. The flash of orange and black through the
blossoms of the fruit orchard is dazzling; the zig-zag, ringing
tones in a nearby woodland thicket are startling and incompre-
hensible; so the bubbling song of the tiny bunch of feathers
that darts through the rushes along the river front. It needs
a tutor to point out that the minstrel in orange and black is
the Baltimore Oriole, a very common bird in Washington Park
and all the environs of Albany; that the bird with the
up-and-down song is the Golden-crowned Thrush, or Ovenbird,
and that the last, the bird along the river, is the Long-billed
Marsh Wren, both the latter being also abundant residents of
Albany County.

In this book I have made the attempt, modestly, of course,

to act as a tutor in the field. Our glass is our only weapon,

INTRODUCTION 21

and as we stroll through meadow or wood, or even in
Washington Park, we endeavor to establish the identity of
the birds by means of the “‘Field-marks” given herein. These
short analyses of the birds’ principal characters are, in the
main, but quick, impressionistic outlines of the feathered folk,
my only object being to present the most salient features in
plumage, call-notes or movements, as the bird is seen with
the naked eye or glass in its natural haunts. In several
instances I have gone beyond this, led by personal interest in
some particular bird; I have also used a various manner in
treating of a number of species; several of the biographies are
essay-like, others smack of the conventional ‘‘bird-book,” and
still others bear the earmarks of the mere catalogue; suffice it
to say, all this has been intentional and therefore I have no
apologies to make.

Very little space has been given to bird-songs as I believe
that this subject has already been overdone. It is also practically
impossible to reproduce in cold type any of the wild beauty,
the thrilling loveliness of the most perfect bird-songs. The
music reviewer always finds himself severely handicapped as
he tries to tell his readers in mere words something about the
glories of the symphony he has heard. Therefore I have little
to say about the music made by the birds. If you wish to
hear it, go out in the fields and listen; and if my little book
will have aided anyone to know the minstrels better, either
by the coats they wear, or their habits of life, perhaps [| shall
not have written in vain.

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THE BIRDS

OF

ALBANY COUNTY

ORDER PASSERES

SUBORDER OSCINES

Family Turdide
BLUEBIRD.—Sialia sialis. 7.04

Very Common Summer Resident

Field marks.—Upper parts bright blue; throat, breast and
sides reddish-brown. Female, duller.

So many pretty things have been said by poets and
naturalists about this little harbinger of Spring that it is next
to impossible to characterize him anew. Nevertheless, the
writers have not agreed as to the date of his arrival in our
cold Northland. His principal distinction is his being so
widely and generally known to all classes of persons. About

every newspaper in the country announces his arrival from the
23

24 THE Birps oF ALBANY COUNTY

South, and even though the dates rarely agree, it is evident that
he has a place in the affections of all, although he may
be only a symbol of the approaching resurrection of life. I
have seen Bluebirds on the ice in February and they did
not seem to mind their frosty surroundings. Hoffman says
that “In southern Connecticut and Rhode Island, especially
along the Sound, and in the lower Hudson Valley, small
flocks of Bluebirds spend the Winter, feeding largely on
berries.” I have no doubt of this statement, as it was in
central Connecticut that I saw Bluebirds in February. No
writer, to my knowledge, has ever recorded their presence as
far north as Albany County in midwinter, and I believe that
the middle or the latter part of March is about the time their
faint, lisping warble is first heard in this section. I am not
going to repeat any of the complimentary things already
written about Bluebird, but I will try and typify him myself.

Far more than a symbol of the coming recrudescence of
nature, he is the type of perfect innocence. His attitude on
limb or fence-post betokens confidence in all men. His
movements are always gentle and devoid of any show of
haste or alarm. He allows you to approach quite close to
him and look upon his azure back and russet breast. If he
finally flits away to some nearby perch his flight is calm and
unflurried and his pose unostentatious. As I have said
elsewhere he never betrays emotion and his serenity we may
not always understand, but surely he is the optimist of the
feathered world. One writer says that Bluebird’s song
breathes of love. Very true; but it is certainly an ethereal

type, with no suggestion of the dross of the world.

BLUEBIRD 25

Bluebird is something more than a symbol. He and his
more modest-hued wife have duties to perform in the springtime
quite as well as other birds not so well known to the human
family. The home is generally in a hollow limb or birdhouse,
but Bluebird never excavates for himself. Like the Great
Crested Flycatcher and House Wren, he hunts about until he
has found a convenient hollow, which has either been fashioned
by the beak of a Woodpecker or through the process of natural
decay, and therein builds the nest of soft grass. From four
to six pale blue eggs are laid and sometimes the first set is
complete by April 15. Two or three broods are reared in
a season. Bluebirds have few enemies to contend with, and
they are as numerous now as when our. grandfathers
were boys. ‘They are not so often seen in cities as formerly,
as they have been driven out by the English Sparrows. But
stroll out in the country a mile or so in the early Spring and
you will be greeted by them on every side.

AMERICAN RoBin.—Merula migratoria. 10.00
Very Common Summer Resident

Field marks.—Head black, white spot over eye; back dark
gray; throat white, spotted with black; rest of under
parts light reddish-brown; bill yellow.

While the writer who said that Robins were, ‘“‘mostly
fools,” may have been rather too sweeping, still, close observers
cannot deny that this bird displays a surprising lack of wit on
most occasions. The strongest evidence against him in this

regard is his way of always acting half scared to death.

26 THE Birps oF ALBANY COUNTY

The majority of persons know Robin, by sight at least, and
it is safe to say that not one in a thousand would do him harm.
He has benefited more than any other bird by the advance of
man’s civilization and he increases rather than diminishes in
numbers. Parks and lawns, where hawks never come, are
his favorite abiding places now, where once he was forced to
dwell in primeval wilds at the mercy of many natural enemies.
Man has acted consciously and unconsciously, as his protector.
To be sure we still have cats with us and it cannot be
overlooked that Puss is extremely fond of tender Robin, but
this is no reason why he should go through the world acting
as though every human had a gun under his coat tails. Such
behavior is uncomplimentary to say the least.

Watch Robin as he hops rapidly over the close-cropped
grass about your home. His head is in the air and he has

_a wild look in his eyes. Even if he stops to pull a worm out
of the earth he keeps well on the lookout for fancied enemies.
Approach him ever so gently and he flies away as though the
evil one were after him, uttering the while his rapid rip, rip,
Tip, Tip, rip.

Then he uses very little discretion about his nest. If old
Moses Babcock, the farmer, while mowing his orchard happens
to swing his scythe under the fruit tree where Robin has his
habitation, he is promptly abused in vociferous tones by both
Mr. and Mrs. Robin, though any fool knows, that Farmer
Babcock would not harm them or their four blue eggs for a
hundred acres of his neighbor’s best land. And if Moses
Babcock, Jr., should be caught by his sire in the act of
squirming up to the said nest, he would straightway feel the

AMERICAN RoBIN at

weight of a horny hand. Of course young Mose sometimes
does loot Robin’s domicile, but that is because Robin has given
away his hiding place by indiscreet and unnecessary screaming.
Birds probably never swear, but ofttimes it seems as though
Robin comes painfully near it. There is rarely any reason for
this resentment, but if a human should sometimes swear at
Robin it might be pardonable.

Despite the foregoing, slightly disparaging remarks, it cannot
be ignored that Robin has some admirable characteristics.
His utility in the economic scheme of things has long been
recognized by the agriculturist. He eats a few cherries—
why should he not?—but the noxious worms and grubs that
fall victims to his excellent appetite, more than compensate
for any alleged wrong-doing in cherry time. He is also a
trim, well-groomed, and altogether handsome bird, and there-
fore an ornament to our parks and lawns. Imagine Washington
Park without the Robins! they are everywhere and animate
every glade and nook.

Robin certainly can sing. His favorite time is generally
in the early morning or the late afternoon, and April is the time
of the year when he is at his best. I stood at sunset one
afternoon near the Capitol and listened to the singing of a
Robin which was balanced on the bare branch of a Maple
and silhouetted against the fading sky. He was a master
among his kind, and in his liquid notes I seemed to catch

the words:
O, beautiful! Beautiful!
Mortals hear!
Glory! O, glory!
Springtime’s here.

28 THE Birps oF ALBANY COUNTY

While migratory as his scientific name implies, individuals
frequently are found in Winter in warm valleys as far north
as Albany County.

Throughout the Summer, Robin builds his nest in any decent
sort of place. I have seen them in sand banks, on beams in
old sheds, and in trees of all kinds. Baird, Brewer, and
Ridgeway in their classic work, ““The Land Birds,”’ state that
Robin lays five eggs. I have examined hundreds of nests in
many parts of the East and never saw but four in one nest,
though it may be that occasionally five are laid.

Robin bears no relation to the English Robin Redbreast for
he is classed with the true Thrushes. The adult shows little
trace of this, but the young-of-the-year have spotted breasts,

which is one of the characteristics of Thrushes the world over.

HERMIT THRUSH.—Hoylocichla guttata pallasii. 7.20

Common Spring and Fall Migrant; Quite a Number Remain
Through the Summer and Breed

Field marks.—Tail reddish-brown, of a distinctly brighter
shade than the olive-brown back; ashy, or tawny,
throat, streaked and spotted with black.

This elegant bird, attractive in voice and personality,
occasionally spends the Summer in Washington Park. In
vocal powers he is regarded by many writers as the Nightingale
of America, and while the migrating individuals seen about
Albany are silent, those that remain to breed sing freely. Mr.

Horace G. Young informs me that one sang gloriously near

WILSON’s THRUSH 29

the Albany Country Club late into June, 1907. Ass its name
implies, the Hermit is extremely retiring, preferring well grown
woods for an abiding place; still, one will occasionally
approach the farmhouse, or even enter the city. A fine male
spent the first two weeks of April, 1907, in the rear yard of
the house where I have my lodgings on High Street. This
yard is directly in the rear of the old home of the Albany
Institute and Historical and Art Society. The bird did not
mind the presence of the laundress hanging out clothes, but
calmly surveyed the scene from the branches of a small peach
tree. Hermit spent most of the time on the ground in the fence
corners grubbing for worms. He was absolutely silent. One
morning while observing the bird from my room with a glass
I discovered near him two White-crowned Sparrows feeding
on the ground.

The Hermit’s nest is placed on the ground; four greenish-

blue eggs are laid.

WILson’s THRUSH; VEERY.—Hylocichla fuscescens. 7.50
Common Summer Resident

Field marks.—Tawny tinge, often overspreading its entire
brown and white plumage; generally stronger on the full
throat.

The Veery is the commonest of the Thrush family in this
County throughout the Summer, frequenting moist woods, or

low swamps where the undergrowth is thick. It can be easily
distinguished from the other Thrushes by the yellowish-brown

30 THE Birps oF ALBANY COUNTY

plumage and low, purring call-note. The song, once heard,
is never forgotten. I have found this Thrush the commonest
in the wooded land south of the Schenectady Turnpike, near
Wolf Road.

The nest is placed on or near the ground and contains four

or five greenish-blue eggs.

Woop THRUsH.—Hylocichla mustelina. 8.28
Summer Resident; not Common

Field marks—Head and upper parts reddish-brown; breast
full, ashy to white, with large round black spots.

When Emerson said that the morning woods are filled with
angels, he had probably just heard the matutinal song of the
Wood Thrush. Had he listened to the same bird gushing
forth its evening hymn in some cool, dark wood he doubtless
would have gone further and proclaimed the arrival on earth
of some beatified spirit with lyre and voice divine. ‘The
concept is easy of comprehension. While the vocal perfor-
mance of several other birds may be more brilliant, surely no
feathered creature on the American continent can so deeply
stir the soul as the Wood Thrush. It has several songs, all
extremely fine, but the one that I allude to, which has
always seemed to me to be the bird’s evening hymn, is
something more than mere melody. It has a flooding quality.
The soft voice of the flute is joined pianissimo by the wood
wind choir and then, the quivering strings perfecting the

harmony, the wildwood is suddenly swept with delicious music-

OLIVE-BACKED THRUSH 31

There is a pause, the shadows grow deeper and the song is
repeated. Darker and darker grows the wood, the green
leaves turn to black solid masses, the great trees are but faintly
outlined against the sky; the Voice becomes silent and the bird
of plain plumage and gentle mien tucks its head under its wing
and falls asleep, guarded by the Creator with as much care,
] venture to say, as man with all his works.

Everything about Wood Thrush is attractive. His graceful
shape, noble breast, and retiring manner invite the love and
admiration of the beholder.

The nest is a homely but comfortable structure of dry leaves
and grass stuck together with mud, and is placed in the fork
of a tree, on a limb, or in a cluster of shrubbery, from five
to ten feet from the ground, generally in close woods. The
eggs are sky-blue, unspotted, and closely resemble those of
the Robin. Wood Thrush is the rarest of the three members
of his family which breed in Albany County.

OLIVE-BACKED THRUSH; SWAINSON’S ‘“T[HRUSH.—
Hylocichla ustulata swainsoni. 7.16

GRAY-CHEEKED THRUSH.—Hylocichla alicie. 7.58

BICKNELL’s THRUSH.—A ylocichla alicie bicknelli.
6.25-7.25

So far as I have been able to learn, these three Thrushes are
never seen in Albany County save as Spring or Fall migrants,

though it seems quite probable that the Olive-backed may

52 THE Birps oF ALBANY COUNTY

occasionally breed in the higher parts of the Helderbergs.
There are records of its nesting in the higher Catskills, but its
summer home is in the Adirondacks and northern New
England. Gray-cheek is seen here only as a rare migrant.
The Bicknell bird is a smaller species, with habits and range
similar to the Gray-cheek. The diagnostic features of the
three birds are so slight that even the trained ornithologist with
a powerful glass often finds himself puzzled to differentiate
between them. If one wishes really to know these Thrushes
I would advise a close study of Chapman’s analyses and a
comparison of the skins, which may be seen in any good

museum.

Family Sylviide
RUBY-CROWNED KINGLET.—Regulus calendula. 4.42
Common in Early Spring and Late Fall

Field marks.—This, and following species, smallest birds seen
here, except Hummingbird and Winter Wren; upper
parts grayish-olive; whitish wing-bars; under parts dull
white; on close view the partially concealed, flaming-red
crest may be revealed; feeds at the ends of twigs,
preferring the hemlock.

This diminutive habitant of bird-land is much more common
in this County than the average observer realizes. I have seen
a large number in Washington Park in the early Spring.
Under excitement the feathers of the head are erected and the
brilliant red spot is visible. It breeds from the northern border

of the State northward.

CERULEAN WARBLER

MAGNOLIA WARBLER

PEATE Vi

GOLDEN-CROWNED KINGLET 33
GOLDEN-CROWNED KINGLET.—Regulus satrapa. 4.05
Common Winter Visitant

Field marks.—Even smaller than the preceding species; crown
striped with orange and yellow; white line over eye;
upper parts olive-gray; under parts dull white.

The habits and breeding range of this species are practically
identical with those of the Ruby-crowned, save that the latter
bird goes farther south for the Winter.

Family Paridz

Subfamily Parine
CHICKADEE.—Parus atricapillus. 5.26
Common Permanent Resident

Field marks.—Utters its name constantly, often repeating the
last syllable several times; head capped with black; rest
of plumage black, gray, and white, with sides buffy.

I have often thought that I would like to write a poem on
Chickadee, but have never been able to fashion a metre or
evolve a style that would do him full justice. He is such a
diminutive creature, a mere tiny ball of feathers, and is so
generally distributed that even the ornithologists have not
devoted much space to his life history, though not one has ever
written anything about him of a disparaging nature.

3

34 THE Birps OF ALBANY COUNTY

How could they? He is as inoffensive as a breeze-blown
ball of thistledown and it would be a clouded mind indeed
that failed to appreciate his unfailing good nature, always in
evidence in all seasons and in all weather. While he is not
partial to cities, he shows no concern when man invades his
precincts. His attitude is rather one of complete indifference.
The direct opposite of the Robin, he never betrays alarm at
the presence of the animal wearing trousers and flits his way
among the forest trees as though the said animal did not exist,
even though several large specimens may be smashing through
the underbrush. Chickadee is possessed of a curiosity,
however, almost as pronounced as that of the Blue Jay and if
you conduct yourself aright when in his vicinity he will be
quite apt to cease his foraging and investigate you.

I have been looked over several times by Chickadees. I
generally approach as close as possible to them and then stand
or sit motionless. This sudden turn of affairs attracts their
attention and they approach gradually. It has been claimed
that they will alight on one’s shoulder or head, but none has
ever honored me to that extent. I have had them come within
three or four feet of me and then, evidently finding me too
commonplace to warrant further attention, they have uttered
a mellow chick-a-dee-de-de-de—dede, and gone their way.

Piney woods are favorite haunts of the Chickadees. They
generally travel in bands in cold weather, and devote all their
time to the search for food among the branches, about half the
time hanging head downward. During the love-season the
male has a simple, but exquisite little song, several notes of

which sound like the softer tones of a flute heard at a distance.

CHICKADEE 35

But the bird’s common call is certainly a very pleasing sound
in the Winter. While walking through the solemn aisles of
some dark wood when the ground was carpeted with snow, the
brooks frozen into silence, and the wind chanting unearthly
melodies through the trees, I have often found the common
notes of the Chickadees sweeter by far to my ears than even
the glorious warbling of the Veery in the full flush of the vernal
season.

Chickadee’s cheery presence is found in Albany County the
entire year. He never migrates and though in severe Winters
he may find himself, sometimes, hard pressed for food, he
never shows any discontent. After the leaves come out in
the Spring he is not so often seen for he has abandoned for the
time his merry companions, chosen a mate and gone to
housekeeping. His home is set up in the hollow of a
deciduous tree which he often excavates himself. As his beak
is not very powerful he generally chooses a very much decayed
limb in which to bore, ofttimes a crumbling white birch. The
nest within the cavity is a perfect marvel. The material mostly
used is rabbit’s hair, which is gathered along bunny’s trails,
though other hair, soft vegetable fiber, and moss are used
sparingly. All this is woven into a felt-like cup which serves
as a soft resting place for the six or eight young. After
family cares are over and the fledglings have been launched
on the world, Chickadees become gregarious again and by

October have resumed their winter habits.

36 THE Birps oF ALBANY COUNTY

HUDSONIAN CHICKADEE.—Farus hudsonicus. 5.32
Rare Winter Visitant

Field marks.—General appearance similar to atricapillus, but
slightly longer; blacks replaced by brownish-gray;
plumage looks ragged.

A few individuals of this species have been observed
occasionally near West Albany in midwinter in company
with common Chickadees or American Goldfinches. Its
breeding range is farther north. While the habits of
hudsonicus are similar to those of our own cheerful little

Chickadee, its notes are said to be quite unlike.

Subfamily Sittine

WHITE-BREASTED NUTHATCH.—Sitta carolinensis. 6.08

Common in Spring and Fall; Rare in Summer and Midwinter

Field marks.—Nasal note, described below, repeated con-
stantly as it creeps up and down tree trunks; plumage
grayish-blue, black and white.

About the only note of this hardy bird—an oft repeated
krank, krank, krank—is often the only sound one hears, when
abroad in the woods in gray November or breezy March.
Occasionally, as the love-season approaches, he becomes so gay
as to attempt a slight song, which is mainly the repetition of
one syllable on about the same key. He is not exactly a

CHICKADEE FEEDING HER YOUNG

PLATE. VI

RED-BREASTED NUTHATCH 37

crank, but is certainly quite eccentric in that he is so different
from the birds of other families. Having heard his call you
will shortly discover him jerkily clambering up and down the
trunks and limbs of trees, searching for bugs and grubs.

His plumage is always smooth and unruffled no matter how
hard the wind may blow. How he manages to keep himself
so well groomed and still devote every minute of the day to
grub-hunting, I never learned.

This Nuthatch is a permanent resident of Albany County,
though in the coldest part of Winter very few are seen, the
majority retiring further down the Hudson Valley, where there
is better protection from the storms and bitter winds. The
nest is built in a hole in a tree; eggs, five to eight, creamy

white, speckled with brown and lavender.

RED-BREASTED NUTHATCH.—Sitta canadensis. 4.61
Not Uncommon Spring and Fall Migrant

Field marks.—Very similar to above species, but much
smaller; under parts reddish-brown.

I have found these birds more common hereabouts in the
Fall than in the Spring. It has a nasal call, but less
pronounced than its near relative the White-breasted Nuthatch.

38 THE Birps oF ALBANY COUNTY

Family Certhiidz

BROWN CREEPER.—Certhia familiaris americana. 5.65
Rare Fall, Winter, and Early Spring Visitant

Field marks.—Brownish bird; creeps along the bark of trees;
looks like a mouse in feathers; slender, curved bill.

It is hard to observe this bird because of its neutral colors
and shy disposition; but only a glimpse is necessary to establish
its identity, for there is no other bird here at all like it.

Family Troglodytidz

Subfamily Troglodytinze

LONG-BILLED MarsH WrEN.—Telmatodytes palustris.
521 |

Common Summer Resident

Field marks.—Conspicuous white line over eye; under parts
white; upper parts streaked and barred with dark
brown; never seen anywhere save in reedy marshes.

Wherever cattails abound, along the Hudson River, in
marshes or about inland creeks or ponds of this County, the
effervescing, delightful, and incessant song of this little creature
is heard throughout the breeding season. One cannot fail
to find them, for, on approaching a colony, they seem to exist

by the hundreds, as all sing at once, both on the wing and

WINTER WREN 39

while swinging on the tall reeds. The song is as indescribable
as the Bobolink’s and once heard will never be taken for any
other. These birds are quite common near Watervliet. The
nests are globular in form, constructed of grass and flags, and
placed in a cluster of cattails. The entrance is through a
small hole in the side. From five to nine chocolate-hued eggs
are laid. ‘The male, to amuse himself and to work off super-
fluous energy, builds several mock nests near the family
domicile, but so far as known they are never occupied.

The Short-billed Marsh Wren (Cistothorus _ stellaris.
4.00) may be present in Albany County, but I admit

never having seen it, and know no one who has.

WINTER WrREN.—Olbiorchilus hiemalis, 4.05
Spring and Fall Migrant and Rare Winter Visitant

Field marks.—Tawny line over eye; entire plumage finely
barred with varying shades of brown; turns tail over
back; fond of frequenting brush piles.

The observer of the birds who has caught a glimpse of this
wonderfully active little sprite in its favorite haunts—the
depths of cool, dark woods along some tiny, tinkling rivulet-—
may well esteem himself fortunate. To be sure it is rather
difficult to distinguish this bird from the House Wren,
Troglodytes aedon, but, once familiar with its various
characteristics, the problem is much simplified. Aedon is apt
to be the more neighborly, invading villages and towns and

40 THE Birps oF ALBANY COUNTY

rearing its young in convenient bird-boxes, while hiemalis is
primarily a bird of the wilds, and asks little odds of man and
The Winter Wren has much the shorter

tail, which is invariably turned over the back and pointed

his contrivances.

towards the head in a very comical and wren-like manner.
Besides, he has a habit of nodding at you, or courtesying, which
should serve to identify him at once.

But the resident of Albany County will not be apt to
encounter the difficulty of distinguishing between these two
closely allied species, except in early Spring and late Fall.
You may look for the Winter Wren in woods along streams,
by dark roadsides, and particularly in brush heaps, in and out
of which he darts with such rapidity that one’s eye must be
very sharp to detect him. In an obscure corner of one of
these brush heaps, in a cluster of black rootlets, or within a
little mossy cavern close to a singing, sylvan stream his nest
is placed. In Albany County this very mouse of a bird is
only a traveller, on his way from the piney woods of Virginia,
I have never seen his nest outside
“‘Breeds from the Northern
States northward, and southward along the Alleghanies to
North Carolina.”” Rarely he is found in Winter as far north
as Massachusetts and the lower Hudson Valley.

A male specimen’ of this beautiful little creature, now in
the State Museum in Albany, I had the good fortune to

discover in a wooded spot near the Normanskill, Kenwood, on

to more northern latitudes.

the museum but Chapman says:

1The lower figure of Plate IV is a por-
trait of this specimen. Since writing
the above, Mr. H. A. Slack, of Pine
Hills, tells me that it is his opinion
that the Winter Wren breedsin Albany

County, occasionally. Atleast he has
seen them late in Spring in brush
heaps. Personally I have not been
able to determine this point, but it
appears not improbable.

HousE WREN 4|

April 30, 1906. The female was not present; indeed, my
Winter Wren was the only bird in that particular spot.

I should not close without saying something about the
striking song of the Winter Wren. It is a long series of trills
and chapperings of a wholly indescribable character, pitched
high and of a clear, liquid quality. During the early Spring
and late Autumn he rarely sings; but throughout the love
season the solitudes where he loves to dwell are often broken

by his inspiring, and even startling, roundelay.

House WrREN.—Troglodytes aedon. 5.00
Fairly Common Summer Resident

Field marks.—Frequents old orchards, barns and birdhouses;
moves very rapidly and constantly gives forth a bubbling
song, entirely lacking in melody; general color brown,

with sides and tail faintly barred with black.

Those who have lived in rural places or those who resided
in cities before the advent of the English Sparrow, will recall
with unalloyed pleasure this small neighbor with his endless
vivacity and gurgling song. Perhaps he had his habitation
in the hollow of a dead limb of the plum tree close to your
chamber window, or mayhap he gushed forth every other
minute a musical appreciation of your thoughtfulness in having
provided a neat bird-box at the end of the grapevine arbor,
or on a post in the garden; it matters not—if you had ears
to hear and eyes to see, you are sure to remember him with
exceptional affection. There is a buoyancy, a light-hearted
abandon about the House Wren’s intermittent warbling that

42 THE Birps oF ALBANY COUNTY

dulls the edge of pessimism and gives a new color to existence.
It is in May and the early part of June that our diminutive
friend is most active, both musically and in domestic affairs.
He and his little wife are about the most indefatigable workers
I know.

They arrive in Albany County from the South about the
last week of April and, after about two weeks preliminary
skirmishing, settle upon a nesting site and begin their labors.
The nest is generally placed in a hollow limb or a bird-box,
though an old tin can lodged in the crotch of a tree, a space
in the walls of a house, or the end of an abandoned stove pipe
often serves the purpose very well. It makes little difference
to these hustling mites of birdland whether the cavity selected
is large or small; in fact, it often appears that they purposely
choose an expansive hollow so that they can work off their
superfluous energy by carrying in building material. Every
square inch of space is literally crammed with twigs, many of
which are as heavy as the birds themselves. No housewife
with a penchant for spring cleaning ever went at her task with
greater vim than do the House Wrens when once they set
out to build their home. They work vigorously from dawn
until dark with an energy that is a standing rebuke to all those
who are inclined to be idle. The female is more retiring in
her manner, but the male is always on deck, singing, working—
and fighting with every feathered intruder, for the House
Wrens are noted for their pugnacity. In such encounters the
Bluebird, the Downy Woodpecker, or even the English
Sparrow, is no match for the Wrens, who invariably come

out triumphant, though often many fierce battles occur before

BROWN THRASHER 43

the victors can pursue, uninterrupted, the even tenor of their
ways. But the English Sparrows are so numerous wherever
brick walls and pavements abound that I fancy the Wrens
have tired of combatting them, and that this is the real reason
why they have retired nowadays to more strictly rural places
to rear their young.

The House Wren is fairly common in some parts of Albany
County. From six to eight eggs are laid and often there are

two broods in a season.

Subfamily Mimine
BRowN THRASHER.—T oxostoma rufum. 11.44
Rare Summer Resident

Field marks.—Long slender bird; bill long and curved; tail
proportionately long; upper parts bright reddish-brown;
grayish under parts, heavily streaked with dark brown;
eye bright orange-yellow; has jerky flight.

This glorious singer, the ““Brown Thrush’’ of the small boy
and persons untrained in bird-lore, is a summer resident of
Albany County, though nowhere common. On walks in May
or June I have met with one or two pairs, but never more,
and sometimes have not encountered them for weeks. The
nest, a flat but artistic structure of sticks and dried rootlets,
is placed in a low bush, or more generally on the ground.
Four eggs, with bluish-white ground, thickly speckled with
cinnamon, are the nest complement. Ordinarily Brown

Thrasher frequents dry, overgrown pastures or low second

44 THE Birps OF ALBANY COUNTY

growth, keeping close to the ground. But at times the male
will mount to the topmost branch of a tall tree and sing for an
hour or two without stopping. The song is conceded to be

the most brilliant of our eastern birds.

CATBIRD.—Galeoscopies carolinensis. 8.94
Common Only in Certain Parts of the County

Field marks.—Entire body slate color, varying to nearly black
on the head and tail; under tail-coverts chestnut.

Although of beautiful conformation and one of the sweetest
singers in the world, the fine qualities of this bird of the thickets
are not very generally known to other than bird students.
Further, with ignorant persons, he is often spoken of in con-
temptuous terms. This is probably because of his name and
his peculiar common note, which vaguely suggests Felis in
distress. But it is only the superficial observer who has not
discovered his fine traits. The disagreeable note is uttered
only when his haunts are invaded, or his beloved nest approached
by some lumbering human. Study him sympathetically and
you will discover that he has few rivals as a vocalist and is one
of the most harmless of our feathered folk. He delights in
moist, warm mornings late in May or early in June, when, with
tail depressed and feathers all in a pretty fluff, he will mount
on a limb and sing in a way to charm the hearer. Catbird is a
common summer resident of Albany County. The nest is built
of sticks and dark, fine rootlets in thick-growing shrubbery,
from three to ten feet from the ground. Four dark green eggs

are laid.

Hous& WREN WITH SPIDER

PLATES! VEL

MockINGBIRD 45
MockINGBIRD.—Mimus polyglottos. 10.50
Very Rare Straggler

Field marks.—Long, slender, symmetrical bird; upper parts
soft grayish, becoming dark olivaceous on wings and
tail; basal half of primaries and outer tail-feathers white;
under parts ashy to white.

In the early Spring of 1900 an Albany woman saw a long,
slender, grayish bird feeding on the scarlet berries of a small
tree in Washington Park. She at first thought it to be a
Cuckoo, but on closer observation with the glass, it seemed to
be nothing less than a Mockingbird. Not trusting to her own
judgment, the lady immediately informed two local bird au-
thorities, and together the three visited the Park on the follow-
ing day. They were amazed to find the same bird in the same
tree, now thoroughly at home and feeding at leisure on the
luscious berries, which had stuck to the twigs over Winter.
Mockingbird allowed the observers to come very close to the
tree, where they had an excellent opportunity to look him over
and note all his characteristics. There was no doubt about the
identification. The bird was seen every day for a week, and
then he disappeared. But while with us, Mockingbird quali-
fied as a pugilist, if not as a singer; he fought well, but
scorned to sing. Robins, Bluebirds, Cedar Waxwings, and
even English Sparrows, were forced to keep their distance and
Mocker was the ruler of that berry tree. He came, he was
seen, and he conquered; and when the berries were all gone, he
went, too. This Mockingbird was a straggler, and it will
probably be many years before another is seen in this County.

46 THE Birps oF ALBANY COUNTY

There is nothing specially remarkable about the presence of
a Mockingbird in this vicinity, as they have bred sparingly in
recent years in one locality in Massachusetts, and are regular,

though rare visitants to southern Connecticut and New Jersey.

Family Mniotiltide

AMERICAN REDSTART.—Setophaga ruticilla. 5.40
Common Summer Resident

Field marks.—Entire upper parts, throat and breast black;
sides reddish-orange; wings and tail barred with salmon;
belly white.

This brilliant little black and orange Warbler is generally
one of the first of its family to be identified by the beginner
in ornithological lore. Aside from its striking coloration, its
habit of spreading its tail like a tiny fan and its flycatcher
manners render identification easy. Its high-pitched, wiry
and rather unmusical song is one of the familiar sounds in our
woods during the last of May. Clearings where second
growth abound are its favorite haunts, though it is often seen
along roadsides. The female is an olive and yellow edition
of the male.

The nest is very similar to the Yellow Warbler’s, but is
generally placed higher, in trees. I once found a beautiful
nest in the fork of a white birch; it was composed of white
vegetable fiber and lined with white cow’s hair, giving a

remarkable example of protective coloration in nest building.

WILSON’s WARBLER 47
WILSON’s WARBLER.—Wilsonia pusilla. 5.00
Common Migrant

Field marks.—Crown lustrous black; forehead yellow; rest
of upper parts bright olive-green; under parts bright
yellow.

The Black-cap, as it has been called, is generally found
among the gay troops of migrating Warblers in the middle of
May, but it moves along rapidly and a brief glimpse is all one
can get. It breeds farther to the North.

CANADIAN WARBLER.—Wiilsonia canadensis. 5.60
Rare Migrant

Field marks.—Under parts bright yellow; breast barred with
black spots; upper parts gray.

From all accounts this bird should occasionally breed here,
but a brief view of it in May is all I have ever obtained.

YELLOW-BREASTED CHAT.—lcleria virens. 7.44
Rare Summer Resident

Field marks.—Upper parts olive-green with infusion of gray;
entire throat and breast brilliant yellow; white line over
eye; belly, ashy to white.

While very recent writers have been inclined to give the

Yellow-breasted Chat a somewhat lower range than this, I

48 THE Birps oF ALBANY COUNTY

have gathered exact data which give him a residence in Albany
County. My friend, Mr. William C. Richard, of Yellowstone
Park, formerly employed here as a taxidermist by the State
of New York, took several specimens and found it breeding
near Kenwood. ‘The frontispiece in this book is from a
mounted specimen taken by Mr. Richard near Waterford, in
Saratoga County. He also took the female and the nest for
State uses. Another excellent ornithologist also informs me
that she observed this species near her summer home on Lake
George. This undoubtedly carries the bird much farther
north than other writers have placed him.

While I have observed the Chat in other sections of the
country, I have not had the good fortune to run across it during
my five years’ residence in Albany County. Our friend with
the lovely yellow breast is the very wizard among the birds.
I do not know of any one who pretends to understand him.
He shrieks, whistles, calls, purrs and whines, and performs
strange gyrations in the air. On a limpid June morning,
when the air is sweet with the perfume of the white azalea
and the tangle in which his nest is built is heavy with dew, he
is fond of disturbing the peaceful scene by a very bedlam of
unearthly sounds; then again he is as silent as a ghost and
the sharpest eyes cannot detect him or his mate. I have
found a great number of their nests, but I never flushed the
bird from one; the domicile was always absolutely deserted,
though the eggs were warm, showing that the parent had just
slipped off silently into the surrounding shrubbery. I have no
doubt but that I was being watched by two pairs of black

eyes, but the birds remained invisible to me. I have, however,

IIIA @lvId

HUMIYHS GAGVAHAADSO'T

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7 ‘ ‘ 7 —
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. : Iv - ag “ve
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NoRTHERN YELLOW-THROAT 49

often observed the bird in a thicket, or on a nearby limb.
Although handsomely proportioned, the bird has a way of
throwing its body into grotesque positions which I have never
seen any other bird assume. Stealing softly into their haunts,
I have seen them throw themselves up in the air, twisting and
turning, up and down, uttering the while their uncanny cries
like little feathered imps. Then, at the snap of a twig, they
would disappear and silence would reign supreme so far as
they were concerned.

The nest is a neatly woven grassy basket placed in a low
bush. Four or five eggs, whitish ground, thickly speckled

with brown, are the nest complement.

NORTHERN YELLOW-THROAT.—Geothlypis trichas
brachidactyla. 5.31

Common Summer Resident

Field marks.—Broad black band across forehead and
extending well down the sides of the head; upper parts
olive; throat and breast bright yellow. Female without
the black band; rest of plumage same as male, but duller.

In damp places where ferns, long grass, and low growing
shrubs are luxuriant, especially along the borders of woodland,
this extremely active little Warbler is common in this County
throughout the breeding season. It has a way of darting
rapidly through the low growth, pausing for an instant on
branch or reed, uttering the while its sharp metallic check, and
disappearing in the leafy maze. Once identified it can never

be mistaken for any other bird.
4

50 THE Birps oF ALBANY CoUNTY

The nest is an artistic, cup-like structure, very deep,
compactly woven, and placed in a thick-growing tussock of
grass, or at the base of several small shrubs, well canopied
with leaves or ferns. I have found several nests within five
miles of Albany.

MourRNING WARBLER.—Geothlypis philadelphia. 5.60
Rare Migrant Late in May

Field marks.—Head, neck and throat bluish-gray, forming
a sort of veil; breast blackish; back olive-green; belly
yellow.

This is about the last migrant to pass through this County

in Spring. Several examples were seen in the Sand Plains

in 1907.

OVEN-BIRD.—Seiurus aurocapillus. 6.17
Common Summer Resident

Field marks.—Walks; constantly teeters; upper parts plain
olive-brown; sides of white throat and breast streaked
with dark brown; crown pale rufus; has an up-and-down
song, which sounds like a repetition of the word shirtee,
shirtee, SHIRTEE, SHIRTEE, beginning softly and
ending in a wild shriek.

Though called a Golden-crowned Thrush our subject is
really not a Thrush at all, but a member of the Warbler family.
He gets his most familiar name, Oven-bird, from the way he
has of building his nest, which is placed on the ground and
domed like an old-fashioned oven. Oven-bird, though very

common in Albany County, is probably unfamiliar to any one

OVEN-BIRD 51

except the bird student. He is more often heard than seen,
and when one has learned to recognize his ringing, up-and-down
notes he will be recognized in about every thicket or wood one
penetrates. He also has a very beautiful song, but few
people have heard it.

Oven-bird figured in one of my earliest and most startling
ornithological experiences. I was a small boy then, and,
attracted and even alarmed by the frantic cries and up-standing
feathers of two of the birds, which greeted me as I passed
through a quiet wood, I began a search for the nest. I
supposed that it was my presence that had disturbed the parent
birds, therefore when I discovered the domed structure [
plunged my hand into the side entrance with boy-like
curiosity, with the object of discovering what treasures the nest
contained. I found out all too soon. My fingers came in
contact with the cold, slimy folds of a snake.

I jumped probably about a rod. The frenzy of the birds
was redoubled. They followed me, screaming and crying.
There was a pathetic note of appeal in their voices. Yes, |
understood, now. They were begging, imploring me to save
their offspring. My fancy, you say? Not at all. Those
birds begged me as clearly as human beings could have done
to come to their relief. Having quickly got over my fright
I approached and with a stout stick pried the horrid reptile
out of the nest. He had one baby bird in his jaws and a
lump in his middle which told the tale of the fate of another.
One blow of my stick paralyzed His Snakeship and caused
him to drop the bird from his mouth. It was not badly
injured and was able to run back into the nest, where I found

three other fledglings resting comfortably and unaware of the

52 THe Birps oF ALBANY COUNTY

danger in which they had been. I then pounded the snake
to death and threw it far away.

What a peace suddenly fell over that bird household!
The parents ceased their cries and with little purring notes of
gratitude returned to the nest, although I stood near at hand.
I don’t believe birds can count and, as the nestling that had
gone down the throat of the snake was not missed, the parents,
finding order apparently restored, resumed their ordinary
duties as though nothing tragic had occurred.

I visited that home several times afterward and had the
satisfaction of seeing the remaining young birds grow up in
safety. I always imagined I was persona grata on their
threshold, for no matter how near I approached, the parents
showed no concern. And sometimes the male would mount
a low branch and give me a ringing song of welcome. The
female always remained as demure as all female birds, but
her glance and manner often seemed to say, “You're all right
brother; our whole family will always love you.”

The following year I rescued another family of Oven-birds
from exactly the same species of enemy, the Milk Snake. It
was in a different wood, but the circumstances and _ the
sentiment were the same. It is not strange, therefore, that
no matter how far I travel from those early scenes, I always
feel that I receive a royal welcome from the Oven-birds when
I pay a visit to their sylvan haunts.

It will be observed that in my representation of Oven-bird’s
common call, or song, I seem to have paraphrased the
description, commonly regarded as classic, given many
years ago by Mr. John Burroughs. He puts the song as
the repetition of the word teacher, but as my ear has caught

LOUISIANA WATER-THRUSH 53

it, the song begins invariably on the last syllable of Mr.
Burrough’s word and ends on the first; therefore I believe

that the word shirtee is more nearly exact.

6.27

LouIsIANA WATER-THRUSH.—Seiurus motacilla.

Rare Summer Resident

Field marks.— Walks, and constantly teeters; white line over
eye; under parts faintly washed with buffy; breast and
sides streaked with very dark brown; throat unspotted;
otherwise similar to Oven-bird.

This is a bird of the mountain torrent, through the spray
of which it darts so rapidly that never but a glimpse of it can
be obtained.

were in wild places and close to small streams.

I once found three of the nests, all of which
In spite of
all my efforts I could never get close enough to observe the
parent birds; but one day I managed to creep close to a nest
set deep in a bank and catch the female with my hand.
After examining her closely I gave her her liberty. The eggs
are five in number, creamy-white, speckled and_ blotched
with reddish-brown and lilac. The Louisiana Water-Thrush
breeds rarely in Albany County. The novice will probably

1After writing the above, I chanced
to read over the article on the Oven-
birdin Frank M. Chapman’s new work
“The Warblers of North America,’
finding the following observation by
Miss I. M. Paddock of St. Johnsbury,
Vt: “The words usually given for
this song, teacher teacher, seem to me
to be begun with the second syllable
thus: cher-tea cher-tea cher-tea.”’ I
have decided to let my rendering
stand as I think my position has been

strengthened, though Miss Paddock’s
spelling of the first syllable is un-
doubtedly the better. Mr. Chapman
writes: ‘‘Formerly, singing Oven-birds
said, to my ear, with remarkable dis-
tinctness and decision, teacher, teacher,
etc., in the usual crescendo chant, but
as I now hear the song the accent is
placed on the last syllable.”” Does
Mr. Chapman mean that the bird has
changed its song, or that he now hears
more correctly?

54 THE Birps OF ALBANY COUNTY

wander through the woods several years before he discovers

a nest. It has a charming song, but it is rarely heard.

WATER-IT HRUSH.—Seiurus noveboracensis. 6.03
Common Migrant, though Rarely Seen

Field marks.—Line over eye buffy; throat spotted; otherwise
almost identical with motacilla.

This third member of the group is very rarely seen in this
County, as a migrant. Its habits are the same as the preceding

species, though its breeding range is farther north.

YELLow PALM WARBLER; YELLOW REDPOLL.—
Dendroica palmarum hypochrysea. 5.40

Not Uncommon Migrant

Field marks.—Crown chestnut; upper parts brownish-olive,
becoming brighter olive on rump; streaks of light chestnut
on sides of throat and breast; under parts bright yellow.

This Warbler keeps close to the ground and frequents low
growth. It will be known by its manner of tilting its body
somewhat like the Spotted Sandpiper.

PINE WARBLER.—Dendroica vigorsii. 5.52

Common Summer Resident

Field marks.—Upper parts brownish-olive; under parts
lighter; throat and breast washed with yellow.

In somewhat open woods where pines and hemlocks abound

this species is very common hereabouts, its faint lisping note

BLACK-THROATED GREEN WARBLER 55

being a familiar sound. It builds its nest high in pine
trees; eggs four or five, whitish ground, spotted with cinnamon

and umber, forming a wreath around the larger end.

BLACK-THROATED GREEN WARBLER.—Dendroica virens.
5.10

Common Migrant

Field marks.—Throat and upper breast shining black; under
parts white, forming a V at junction of black on breast;
cheeks, forehead, and line over eye yellow; upper parts
olive-green.

Fond of open woods. Does much of its insect hunting at
the ends of twigs. In strong light appears brilliant yellow,
green, and black, and unlike any other Warbler.

BLACKBURNIAN WARBLER.—Dendroica blackburnie.
5.24

Fairly Common Migrant

Field marks.—Throat, breast, and line over eye brilliant
orange; upper parts black, streaked with gray.

Two Blackburnians which I saw in pine woods near Wolf
Road on May 24, 1907, lead me to believe that the species
may occasionally breed in this County. But this was an
unusually cold Spring and all the birds were late in migrating.
These two examples may have continued onward to the

breeding grounds of the species farther north.

56 THE Birps oF ALBANY COUNTY

BLACK-POLL WARBLER.—Dendroica striata. 5.57
Uncommon Migrant

Field marks.—Crown black; auriculars white; two white
wing-bars; rest of plumage white, gray, and_ black,
streaked.

Although the Black-poll is supposed to be a commoh
migrant through the Hudson Valley I have seen but very few.

BAY-BREASTED WARBLER.—Dendroica castanea. 5.64
Uncommon Migrant

Field marks.—Crown, throat, breast, and sides chestnut; back
streaked with black; two white wing-bars.

Migrates late in May. Some years none is seen.

CHESTNUT-SIDED WARBLER.—Dendroica _ pensylvanica.
5.14

Very Common Summer Resident

Field marks.—Bright chestnut stripe on sides; crown yellow;
back greenish, streaked with black; under parts pure
white.

In the northward migrating season this bird is the most
numerous of its family. In the wooded slopes along the
Normanskill, at Kenwood, about the middle of May, I have
observed hundreds of the Chestnut-sides flitting from branch

to branch, along with other more rare travelers. But in early

CERULEAN WARBLER 52

June I have found them very numerous and have run across

several of their nests in low-growing shrubbery.

CERULEAN WARBLER.—Dendroica cerulea. 4.50
Extremely Rare Spring Migrant

Field marks.—Upper parts bright blue; back and sides of
head streaked with black; under parts white; dark blue
band across breast; two white wing-bars.

This beautiful little bird, whose plumage reflects the blue of
a summer sky shot across with fleecy clouds, is probably the
very rarest of the Warbler family in this part of the country.
Evidently several noted ornithologists never saw it until very
recently, while some in late works have omitted it from their
lists of birds of the East. The real habitat of Czrulea
is the broad Mississippi Valley during the breeding season and
the tropics in Winter. It is, however, one of the few birds
that is evidently extending its range eastward, having been
observed occasionally in recent years at several points east of
the Alleghanian range. Sometimes it straggles into Connecticut
and Rhode Island.

In the early Spring, it not infrequently happens that
individuals of species peculiar to the Mississippi Valley take
the East Alleghanian route, proceed northward along the
Atlantic coast and finally reach New England. The bird
has long been included in the avifauna of New York State,
Lockport being regarded as the limit of its eastward range.

As far as my knowledge goes but one specimen has ever been

58 THE Birps oF ALBANY COUNTY

observed in Albany County. I happened to be one of a
party of four ornithologists that discovered this single individual
which was sauntering onward in the midst of a ‘“‘wave’”’ of
migrating Warblers. Our Czrulea was shot and is now in
the State Museum at Albany. It was taken at Kenwood,
May 14, 1906.1 Ceerulea’s song, if such it might be called,
is similar to that of the Parula Warbler and consists of a little
trill, or a succession of rapidly uttered syllables, in which there
is no trace of melody, though it is not an unpleasing sound
when all the woods are beginning to turn to yellow-green.
The bird student in this County will have no opportunity of
studying the nidification of the Cerulean Warbler.

MAGNOLIA WARBLER.—Dendroica maculosa. 5.13
Common Migrant

Field marks.—Under parts bright yellow; heavy black streaks
on sides, converging at center of breast and forming a
broken band; white patch on wing; upper parts ashy to
black; rump yellow.

I feel a distinct pleasure in recording that these birds are
present in large numbers all through the Spring and Fall
migrations. They are leisurely in their manner, seeming to
take their long journey to and from the breeding grounds by
easy stages, and often in May remain about Albany several

1My note-book tells me that on this burnian, Black-throated Blue, Black
date we observed thirty-seven species and White, Cerulean, Golden-crowneds
of birds, among which were the follow- and Wilson’s. The most numerous
ing Warblers: Parula, Yellow, Red- was the Chestnut-sided.
start, Myrtle, Chestnut-sided, Black-

MyrTL—E WARBLER 59

days at a time. Magnolia is an exquisite type of Warbler.
Its under parts resemble the Canadian, but it can always be
told from that bird by the white patch on the wings. One of
the prettiest sights I ever saw a-field was a fine male Magnolia
feeding among the white, feathery blossoms of a wild
cherry tree.

MyrTLE WARBLER; YELLOW-RUMPED WARBLER.—
Dendroica coronata. 5.65

Common Migrant

Fidd marks.—Rump, crown-patch, and sides of breast

yellow; white wing-bars; upper parts gray, streaked with
black.

This is about the earliest Warbler to arrive in Spring, the

first appearing about Albany the last of April. It apparently
remains about fifteen days and then disappears until Fall.

BLACK-THROATED BLUE WAaRBLER.—Dendroica
cerulescens. 5.28

Field marks.—Throat, breast, and sides of head black; upper
parts bluish-gray; distinct white patch on wing; belly
white.

During the Spring migration of 1907 I found this bird
almost as common as the Magnolia. In September and early

October it is also present quite numerously.

60 THE Birps OF ALBANY COUNTY

YELLow WARBLER; SUMMER YELLOWBIRD.—Dendroica
estiva. 5.11

Common Summer Resident

Field marks.—Entire plumage bright yellow; breast finely
streaked with reddish-brown.

In close-growing willows along watercourses, this pretty
little bird, whose plumage reflects the golden tones of the
newest leaves, is very common throughout the breeding season.
At other times from early May until September, he is found
in orchards and woods. ‘The nest, which is a dainty
cup-shaped structure, composed of soft, gray vegetable fibers,
is generally found in the fork of a shrub, but sometimes it
is placed in a tree from ten to thirty feet from the ground.

The Yellowbird has a pleasing song.

Cape May WaARBLER.—Dendroica tigrina. 5.00

Very Rare Migrant

Field marks.—Auriculars chestnut; yellow patch on sides of
neck; rump yellow; white patch on wing; under parts
yellow, streaked with black; crown black; back olive
green, streaked with black.

Some years a very few examples of this Warbler have been
observed migrating through Albany County. Other years

they seem to be entirely absent.

NoRTHERN PARULA WARBLER 6l

NoRTHERN PARULA WARBLER.—Compsothlypis americana
usnee. 4.72

Common Migrant

Field marks.—Upper parts bright bluish-gray; greenish-yellow
patch in center of back; throat and breast yellow, with
dark orange-brown band across breast; wing-bars white;
belly white.

This, one of the smallest and most graceful of its family,
occurs only as a migrant in this County. When in transit it
often is seen flitting among the branches of trees in cities. In
its breeding haunts it frequents moist, dark woods where usnea
moss hangs luxuriantly from the trees. Its nest is built in

a cluster of this moss.

TENNESSEE WARBLER.—Helminthophila peregrina. 5.00
Rare Migrant

Field marks.—Back olive-green; top of head gray; under
parts white; no wing-bars.

Has been observed here rarely. In migrating it frequents
open fields or sparse woodland.

62 THE Birps oF ALBANY COUNTY

NASHVILLE WARBLER.—Helminthophila rubricapilla.
4.78

Uncommon Summer Resident

Field marks.—Reddish-brown crown patch, partially concealed
by overlaying grayish feathers; rest of upper parts
olive-green; entire under parts brilliant yellow.

During the Spring migration the Nashville keeps to the tops
of tall trees, where often “waves” of hundreds are seen. On
May 6, 1907, I encountered one of these Nashville troops
at Kenwood. The bird is rarely seen in Summer in any
part of the country where I have observed birds. It
undoubtedly breeds in this County, though I have not found
its nest. One nest that I found in central Connecticut was
typical, being placed on the ground in second growth; the
birds had carpeted the entrance with green moss. ‘The four

tiny eggs were white ground, faintly speckled with pale brown.

GOLDEN-WINGED WARBLER.—Helminthophila chrysoptera.
5.10

Extremely Rare Migrant

Field marks.—Lores, auriculars, and throat black; white line
above eye and on sides of throat; crown yellow; upper
parts bluish-gray; patch on wing yellow; under parts
yellow.

This birds breeds north and south of this County, but here
has only been observed in the migrating season, and then

very rarely.

BLACK AND WHITE WARBLER 63

BLACK AND WHITE WARBLER.—Mnioiilta varia. 5.31
Common Summer Resident

Field marks.—Black and white, streaked, creeping bird.

This little chap used to be called the Black and White
Creeper, which fits him perfectly. He can be mistaken for
no other bird, because of his markings and habit of creeping
about the bark of trees searching for food. Many are seen
about here in the Spring and Fall, but in Summer they retire
to densely wooded places where the nest is placed on the

ground, at the base of a tree or stump.

Family Vireonide
WHITE-EYED VIREO.—Vireo noveboracensis. 5.30
Uncommon Summer Resident

Field marks.—Iris white; yellowish lores and eye-ring; upper
parts olive-green with grayish tinge; two buffy wing-bars;
throat dull white; breast and sides slightly yellowish.

Farther down the Hudson Valley this bird is a common
summer resident, but in Albany County the finding of its nest
is counted as a rarity. It is more noisy than others of its
family, defending its domicile with several vigorous alarm
notes. To identify it one must approach close enough to
observe the white iris, which is very pronounced. All the

Vireos’ nests are similar. They are pensile, pretty cups woven

of strips of soft bark from slender vines, lined with soft,

64 THE Birps oF ALBANY COUNTY

light-colored grass, and often ornamented on the outside with
bits of spiders’ webs, lichens, feathers, and scraps of newspaper.
The edges are fastened to a horizontal fork which is at varying
distances from the ground. Eggs white, spotted with brown
at the larger end.

BLUE-HEADED VIREO; SOLITARY VIREO.—Véireo
solitarius. 5.62

Not Uncommon Migrant

Field marks.—Lores and eye-ring white; upper parts varying
from bluish-gray to yellowish-olive; white wing-bars;
under parts whitish, with sides faint yellowish.

While passing from the South to its breeding grounds in
the northern part of the State and Canada, and during the Fall
migration, this species is frequently seen in this County. It
has a loud, clear song, after the manner of the Vireos, but this

is rarely heard hereabouts.

YELLOW-THROATED VIREO.—Vireo flavifrons. 5.95
Not Uncommon Summer Resident

Field marks.—Throat and breast brilliant yellow; eye-ring
yellow; two white wing-bars; upper parts distinct
olive-green; grayish on rump; belly white.

This is the gayest hued member of the Vireo family seen
in this section and can be easily identified from the above

TOWHEE

PEATE LX

WARBLING VIREO 65

outline description. It has been observed frequently in late
May and early June in Washington Park and along the city
streets where maple trees abound. It warbles a few phrases,
without beginning or end, and by its insouciant manner seems
to find the world a good place to live in, especially in places
where man has grown fine shade trees and cleared out the
undergrowth.

The rattle of the ice-wagon on the city pavements has no
more terrors for Yellow-throat than for the Warbling Vireo,
and late in the year, after the leaves have fallen, its nest will
sometimes be revealed in the horizontal fork of some tall tree,
standing out against the wintry sky as a rebuke to the most

observing ornithologist.

WARBLING ViREO.—Vireo gilvus. 5.81
Not Uncommon Summer Resident

Field marks.—Upper parts grayish olive-green: lacks wing-
bars; under parts dull white; belly faintly washed with
yellow.

The cheery, though somewhat monotonous warbling of this
bird is a familiar sound in almost all wooded places in this
section throughout the Summer. It is frequently heard in city
parks and about country homesteads. ‘The singer keeps well
in the tops of trees and while heard constantly, is very rarely
seen. I have frequently stretched my neck and strained my
eyes in an effort to catch a glimpse of the musician, but

without result, although the bird was within twenty feet of me.
5

66 THE Birps OF ALBANY COUNTY

The nest is the same as all the Vireos, though it is generally
higher, being placed in trees from fifteen to forty feet from
the ground.

PHILADELPHIA VIREO.—Vireo philadelphicus. 4.75
Very Rare Migrant

Field marks.—Whitish line over eye; upper parts light
grayish-olive, showing green cast in right light; cheeks
gray; under parts very light yellow.

I have seen but one example of this species outside
the museum, and this I procured early in the Spring.
Nuttall, writing in 1832, did not know of its existence; it
was first described in 1851. It is said to breed from the
northernmost parts of the State northward, but very little is

yet known of its life history.

RED-EYED VIREO.—Vireo olivaceus. 6.22
Common Summer Resident

Field marks.— Wide, pure white line over eye; iris red; upper
parts light greenish-olive; under parts pure white.

I know of no bird so demure and love-inviting as this.
When all the Spring world has turned to golden-green we
greet them in sylvan vales and glades, gliding noiselessly
among the new leaves searching for insects and a nesting

site. They show no fear, and often come quite close to the

LOGGERHEAD SHRIKE 67

observer. A slight turn of the head and a casual glance is
all the notice they take of the invader. I have observed that
they always arrive from the South in pairs, a fact which I
have never seen recorded by other ornithologists. ‘This
species is the plainest hued of all the Vireos. The song is
similar to that of the Warbling Vireo and repeated constantly.
Sometimes the nest is placed close to the ground and again
it may be in a tree, twenty-five feet from the ground.
Red-eye is frequently seen in Washington Park and along

the tree-lined avenues in the western parts of Albany.

Family Laniide
LOGGERHEAD SHRIKE.—Lanius ludovicianus. 9.00
Rare Spring and Fall Migrant
NORTHERN SHRIKE.—Lanius borealis. 10.30
Occasional Winter Visitant

Field marks.—In first species, broad black band on side of
head covering lores and auriculars; upper parts gray;
wings and tail black with white markings; under parts
white; bill hooked; ludovicianus is similar, except the
band on side of head is narrower, and the under parts
more or less delicately barred with grayish.

Both of these birds, so very similar in habits and appearance,
are sometimes seen in Albany County, the Loggerhead in
Spring and Fall, and the Northern in Winter. The arrival
of a Shrike in any locality always causes a flurry of

excitement among the smaller birds, for they know only too

68 THE Birps oF ALBANY COUNTY

well that he is a murderer, and is around for no good. ‘The
Shrike doubtless views the situation otherwise, for he likes to
eat tender little birds. This explains the hooked bill, which
is used to tear the flesh, after the manner of a hawk.
If Shrike happens to seize a bird when his stomach is full,
he impales his prey on a thorn and returns to it later. Some
observers have gone so far as to say that the Shrike, or
Butcher Bird, often catches birds and impales them just as
a pastime.

The ordinary calls of the Shrikes are harsh and unmusical,

but both birds are said to have vocal powers not unlike those

of the Catbird.

Family Ampelide

CEDAR WAXWING; CEDAR-BIRD.—Ampelis cedrorum.
7.19

Fairly Common Summer Resident

Field marks.—Stands very erect; long crest, nearly always
raised; entire bird in the field appears light grayish-
brown; on close view, small, red, bead-like ornaments
are found appended to the secondaries; tail tipped with
yellow; belly washed with yellowish.

While early to arrive in Spring and very late to depart
in the Autumn, the Cedar-bird finds the Winters hereabouts
too cold to his liking, though in the southern part of the
State, large flocks are often found in the dead of Winter.

A faint and rather plaintive lisping note, which can be heard

xX dLVvid

wavy GaNwaopy

BoHEMIAN WAXWING 69

only at a short distance, is about the only sound they ever
utter. When the cherries are ripe the Cedar-birds often
display considerable animation as they pluck the juicy fruit
from the stem, but in the intermediate seasons they have a
peculiar way of wheeling about in flocks, suddenly alighting
on the bare branches of a tree and sitting motionless. ‘The
perfect order in which they always keep their plain but rich
plumage and their erect attitude gives them a handsome and
distinguished appearance. ‘The nest is not built until toward
the last of June or along the first week of July. It is generally
in an orchard on a fruit-tree limb.

Eggs, four or five, much elongated, spotted with dark
brown or black on light bluish-slate ground.

BoHEMIAN WAXWING.—Ampelis garrulus. 8.00
Rare and Irregular Visitant

Field marks.—Almost entire plumage rich grayish-brown,
slightly darker on back and wing coverts, and so fine
and smooth as to give a waxen appearance; wings
bluish-black, regularly flecked with white and yellow;
ends of secondaries tipped with scarlet, seed-like
appendages; feathers of crown reddish-chestnut and
comparatively long, forming a conspicuous crest; fore-
head, line over eye, and auriculars black; chin lustrous
black: under tail-coverts bright chestnut; tail feathers
tipped with yellow, forming a band.

The above description is from a skin in my possession,
which was taken by a friend in Wyoming, December 9, 1900.

Two years later the same friend took two in Saratoga

70 THE Birps oF ALBANY COUNTY

County, this State, and on the same day observed a large
number across the river in Albany County. This is probably
the only known record of the Chatterer being here and it
may be several years before any more are seen. Garrulus
has been a puzzle to the ornithologists for a century, and its
breeding habits are even now but little known. It is a great
flier and is said to wander all over North America, Europe
and Asia. It apparently has no definite range, but is more
common in the Northwest and along the Rocky Mountains.
Why it should have been called a Chatterer I cannot imagine
as all authorities agree that its only note is a faint, lisping
sound, similar to that of its near relative, the Cedar

Waxwing.

Family Hirundinide

ROUGH-WINGED SWALLOW.—Stelgidopteryx serripennis.
5.74

Not Uncommon Summer Resident

Field marks.—Throat and breast brownish-gray; upper parts
darker; belly white.

This bird I have observed on numerous occasions in
Albany County. The student will! find it difficult to identify
while it is on the wing, but if the skin of an adult specimen
is examined closely it will be found that the outer primaries
are edged with short, spiny feathers, which to the naked eye
resemble the teeth of a fine saw, bent back until they look

like minute hooks. If one can get a good look with a glass

BANK SWALLOW 71

at the Rough-wing in the field, the dull tone of the breast
is the best key to identification.

This bird’s flight is rapid and graceful, but it is apt to keep
lower than its near relative, the Bank Swallow. The
Rough-wing builds its nest in holes in banks, in crevices in
rocks, or on beams under bridges. From four to eight pure
white eggs are laid.

A very pathetic incident I witnessed recently in connection
with my study of these birds. One had been shot for the
State Museum, and, but slightly wounded, had fallen into
the water, on the surface of which it floundered about
pitifully. The mate, seeing its companion’s plight, suddenly
ceased its winged search for insects and hovered frantically
over the injured bird with such an evident desire to rescue
it that all our party were sorely distressed at the sight.
Another shot sacrificed the sorrowing bird on the altar of
science. Though the museum tags give no account of this
brief, tragic episode, it served to show once more to the
observers that our feathered friends have feelings closely akin

to those of the human race.

BANK SwALLow.—Riparia riparia. 5.20
Fairly Common Summer Resident

Field marks.—Band of brownish-gray across breast; rest of
under parts white; upper parts blackish-brown.

This Swallow is present in considerable numbers, though

there appears to be no extensive breeding grounds here. The

72 THE Birps oF ALBANY COUNTY

nest, made of grasses and feathers, is at the end of a small

tunnel dug by the birds in a sand bank; eggs, five or six, white.

TREE SWALLOW; WHITE-BELLIED SWALLOW.—
Iridoprocne bicolor. 5.91

Fairly Common Summer Resident

Field marks.—Upper tail-coverts light brown; entire under
parts pure white; upper parts steel blue, appearing black

in flight.

Has been observed quite numerously out in the open
country. There are records of its breeding in adjoining
counties and it undoubtedly does here. The nest is built in
a hollow tree or bird-box; eggs, four or five, white ground,

finely speckled with brown.

BARN SWALLOoW.—Hirundo erythrogastra. 6.95
Common Summer Resident

Field marks.—Forehead, throat, and upper breast bright
chestnut; upper parts deep violet; under parts washed
with light chestnut; tail shaped like a partly-opened pair
of scissors.

From the first of May until the last of September, the
Barn Swallows are very numerous in this County. They are,
perhaps, the most graceful fliers we have. Sweeping low
over the broad, open meadows, describing long curves, or

rising and falling on the breeze like slender boats on a rolling

CLIFF SWALLOW 73

sea, their wing-evolutions are often a source of wonder, even
to the casual observer. While they secure their food on the
wing, they seem at times to skim through the air for the sheer
delight of flying. In some old barn, where the shadows
mingle with the subdued light, their constant twittering is a
familiar sound. Here they build their nests, which are of
mud and straw, lined with feathers, and plastered against the
side of a beam. The young on leaving the nest are able to
fly almost as well as the parents. Barn Swallows can be
distinguished from all others of the tribe by the long,
forked tail.

Eggs, four to six, elongated, finely speckled with light
shades of brown.

CLIFF SWALLow; EAVE SwALLow.—Peitrochelidon
lunifrons. 6.00

Fairly Common Summer Resident

Field marks.—Cream-white bar across forehead; bright
chestnut throat, extending in narrow collar about neck;
black line down center of throat; rest of under parts
buffy; crown and back, black, showing lustrous violet in
strong light; wings and tail dusky; bright reddish-brown
patch on rump.

When these birds sit in the entrances of their gourd-shaped
nests, the crown shows conspicuously like a little crescent moon;
the square tail in flight distinguishes it from the Barn Swallow.
‘The Eave Swallow breeds here and there in this County under

the eaves of old barns and sheds, but it is more common

74 THE BirpDs oF ALBANY COUNTY

during migration. The nest is made of mud, lined with
grasses and feathers; eggs, four or five, spotted with light

brown.

PurpPLeE MartTIn.—Progne subis. 8.00
Very Rare Summer Resident

Field marks.—Largest of the swallows; entire plumage
lustrous steel-blue; wings and tail brownish.

A pair of these birds was seen in Watervliet about a
bridge over the river two years ago, evidently looking for
a nesting site. They probably breed here sparingly in rural
places, though I have met no one who can vouch for this
fact. The Martins were once numerous, coming into cities
to breed, but have been almost exterminated by the English
Sparrows usurping their nesting boxes. The eggs number

four or five and are pure white.

Family Tanagride
SCARLET TANAGER.—Piranga erythromelas. 7.26
Uncommon Summer Resident

Field marks.—Entire body flaming scarlet; wings and tail
ebony black.

This, the most brilliantly plumaged bird in North America,

is rather a local bird, sometimes being apparently absent from

quite wide areas. I observed a number in Montgomery and

Schenectady Counties, but have never seen more than half a

SUMMER TANAGER 75

dozen in Albany County. Some seasons I have encountered
none. Notwithstanding the brilliant colors of the male, he
is an extremely sedate and retiring bird, making no effort at
any time to flaunt his gay plumage. Even the most
experienced ornithologist counts it an event when suddenly
the flaming colors of the beautiful creature are discovered
against the green of oak or chestnut trees. Some years
the Scarlet Tanager is rarely seen, and at other times one
will run across several, in an old road, perhaps, or an orchard,
though open groves are its favorite abiding place. The male
sheds his bright feathers the last of August and becomes for
the rest of the year similar to the female—greenish-olive,
brown, and pale yellow. During the breeding season the male
is often heard to warble, faintly but pleasingly, some of his
notes resembling those of the Robin.

The nest is rather carelessly constructed and placed on a
limb, rarely more than twenty feet from the ground. I have

found more nests in orchards than in woods.

SUMMER TANAGER; SUMMER RED-BIRD.—Piranga
rubra. 7.50

Uncommon Summer Resident

Field marks.—Plumage dull rose-red, becoming reddish-
brown, or dusky on wings and tail. Female, similar to
erythromelas, but lighter olive.

A pair of these birds bred near Hurstville in 1904 and
another pair had their nest in Pine Hills in 1905. This is

76 THE BirRDS OF ALBANY COUNTY

given on the authority of Mr. H. A. Slack, of this City, who in
both instances observed the birds throughout the Summer and
saw the nests. Mr. Slack informs me that the Summer Red-
bird is a regular, though not common, resident of the County.
It is my opinion that this species once bred more numerously in
the center of this State and in Massachusetts, though its northern
range is now generally limited to New Jersey. Chapman says
that it is common in the Southern States, “‘wandering casually
to Nova Scotia.”” If it should be one’s good fortune to come
upon this bird it can be mistaken for no other. It appears a
dull red all over; the Scarlet Tanager is much more brilliantly
colored and has black wings and tail.

The nest and eggs of the Summer Tanager are similar to

those of the Scarlet Tanager.

Family Fringillide

INDIGO BUNTING; INDIGO-BIRD.—Cyanospiza cyanea.
5.59

Field marks.—Entire body blue, deepest on upper parts, back
showing brilliant greenish tinge in strong light; wings and
tail dull black with grayish margins. Female, brownish,
with faint tinge of indigo on wings and tail.

This lovely little bird is a common summer resident of
Albany County, but seems to have a preference for roadsides,
where, from mid-June to the latter part of August, the males

are heard uttering their tilling warble from a telegraph wire

IX, fivid

‘

OOMNA) GATIIG-MOTISA X

ROSE-BREASTED GROSBEAK ii

or tree-top. The nest, a grassy cup, is placed in a bush close
to the ground. Four or five bluish-white eggs are laid.

ROSE-BREASTED GROSBEAK.—Zamelodia ludoviciana.
8.12

Common Summer Resident

Field marks.—Large angular spot of rose-red on breast, the
lower point often extending in a narrow line down the
white belly; head, throat, upper back and wings black;
rump white; wings flecked with white; bill thick.

When the novice meets this strikingly handsome bird for
the first time he is apt to believe that he has encountered some
wanderer from the Tropics. Later, when the denizens of the
feathered world have become known and it is found that the
Rose-breasted Grosbeak is quite common in this vicinity, the
student experiences a feeling of gratitude that Mother Nature
has been so kind. The rose-red breast and the black and
white upper parts of the male render identification easy; the
female looks like an enlarged edition of a sparrow. The nest
and eggs are very similar to those of the Scarlet Tanager but
generally built lower, in shrubs or small trees. The male,
during the love-season, warbles beautifully, the notes being
loud, clear and mellow.

78 THE Birps oF ALBANY COUNTY

TowHEE; CHEWINK.—Pipilo erythrophthalmus. 8.36
Common Summer Resident

Field marks.—Entire upper parts black; white markings on
wings and tail; belly white; sides bright chestnut; keeps
tail well elevated; speaks its name, “Che-wink,”
frequently, with the last syllable long drawn out; fond
of keeping near the ground.

I confess to an extreme fondness for this unobtrusive and
inoffensive feathered friend of my walks in many parts of our
country. He has no wonderful accomplishments and _ is
plainly, though handsomely, garbed in hues that reflect the
tones of the earth. Occasionally he flies up on a low limb
and utters his brisk che-wink once or twice, and if nothing
particular is discovered in the vicinity, drops back to the
ground and resumes his scratching for food. ‘The noise the
Towhee makes while poking among the leaves for nice, fat
grubs and insects, is one of the familiar sounds that greet the
ears of the stroller through old pastures that have become
overgrown with birch sprouts and brambles, and along the
outskirts of woods.

Late in the afternoon, Towhee likes to forsake the ground
for a period, mount to the topmost branches of a medium-
sized tree and sing its only song—if such it might be
called. I remember that when walking one day afield with
my mother, while I was quite a little chap, a Towhee was
going through its limited repertoire on one of these nearby
heights. ‘‘Do hear that sweet bird say “Drink your tea,’ ”
she exclaimed, and ever since that day, that has been the

bird’s song to me. Ralph Hoffman thinks that the song

Fox SPARROW 79

“resembles the syllables dick-yoo, chiddle-chiddle-chiddle,”
but I believe it is better represented by the words drink your
iea-e-e-e-e. The bird arrives in Albany County about the
first of April and departs during the last week of October.
The nest is placed on or near the ground and two broods are

reared.

Fox SpARROW.—Fasserella iliaca. 7.26
Migrant; more Common in the Fall

Field marks.—Largest of the Sparrows; everywhere blotched
and marked with bright reddish-brown.

In the early Spring and late in the Fall this species is seen
in this County as a migrant. Generally they keep well to
the country, but not uncommonly they pause awhile in town
or village gardens and scratch among the dead leaves in search
of food. They are easily recognizable by their large size and
colors, which closely resemble those of the sleek coat of

Reynard.

SWAMP SPARROW.—WMelospiza georgiana. 5.90
Common Summer Resident
Field marks.—Under parts light slaty-gray, unmarked, lighter
on throat; crown bright reddish-brown; upper parts dark
brown, streaked with black.

This is a somewhat characterless bird and difficult for

the novice to identify. It frequents marshy places and the

80 THE BirDs oF ALBANY COUNTY

nest is generally sunk deep in the long grass of a bog. The

eggs are similar to those of the Song Sparrow.

LINCOLN’s SPARROW.—Melospiza lincolnit. 5.75
Rare Migrant

Field marks.—Buffy band across breast; under parts white;
upper parts similar to Song and Swamp Sparrows.

This species is occasionally found in early Spring and
mid-Fall in company with Song and other migrating Sparrows.
Only the keen eye, behind an excellent field-glass, can
identify it.

Sonc SPARROW.—Melospiza cinerea melodia. 6.31
About the Most Common Summer Resident

Field marks.—Large black spot in center of the brown-streaked
breast; upper parts varying shades of brown.

It has always been a source of wonder to me that so few
people seem to know the Song Sparrow, although it is one
of the commonest birds in eastern North America. As
early as the last of March this brave little brown citizen of
the feathered world may be heard singing heartily in
Washington Park, though the snow still shows in patches on

distant uplands. His song has more of the element of Spring

FEMALE RuBY-THROATED HUMMINGBIRD ON NEST

YounGc KINGBIRDS

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Sonc SPARROW 8l

in it than any I know. To be sure the Bluebird is the
accepted herald of the vernal season, but his song is cold,
unemotional, and impersonal, while that of the Song Sparrow
is warm, vibrant with suggestions of the awakening world,
and is really the most cheery, hopeful sound in nature during
the early Spring. Writers have vied with each other in
eulogizing Song Sparrow’s vocal powers. He is a true
melodist, with a fine sense of measure and rhythm, which has
caused him to be classed far above many more pretentious
birds whose vocal efforts command attention by their variety
and brilliance.

Song Sparrow is very modest and withal practical. His
stage is generally a humble fence-post, and his lyrics are only
interludes in a regular routine of household duties. Ofttimes
the first nest is made and a complete set of eggs laid by the
first of May. The fledglings are no sooner launched on the
world than the laying of a second set of eggs is begun. By
the first of July, preparations for the rearing of a third family
are under way. I have found near Albany as late as
August 17, nests containing fresh eggs, and the parent birds
seemed much interested in what may have been, for all I
know, their fourth housekeeping venture of the season. The
nest is placed on or near the ground and is often a very pretty
structure. One that I found some years ago was composed
almost entirely of fresh, yellow straw.

In eastern Pennsylvania, New Jersey, Connecticut, Massa-
chusetts, and in the counties of Albany, Columbia, Rensselaer,
Washington, Fulton, and Montgomery, of New York State,

6

8&2 THE Birps oF ALBANY COUNTY

I found Song Sparrow from early Spring to late Autumn to
be the most numerous of all the birds.

SLATE-COLORED JUNCO; BLACK SNOWBIRD.—Junco
hyemalis. 6.27

Common in Spring and Fall

Field marks.—Upper parts, throat, and upper breast light
slate color; lower breast white, giving vest-like effect;
white outer tail-feathers show prominently in flight.

I have found the Black Snowbird very common about
Albany, in the Fall and early Spring, but though they are
supposed to be present in Winter, I have never encountered
them hereabouts after the really cold weather had set in.
Juncos breed in the Adirondacks, occasionally in the Catskills,
and possibly in the higher Helderbergs.

In the Spring of 1904, I found these birds on Greenbush
Heights, Rensselaer County, as late as the last week of April,
and IJ harbored the hope of finding them breeding there later.
But on my next visit to that locality—the middle of May—
they had all disappeared. Juncos always travel about Albany
in little companies. In late October and throughout the milder
parts of November, Juncos are the most common birds in
this section, along old roadsides and country lanes. In their
summer home they have a slight song, but only utter a short

metallic chirp hereabouts.

FIELD SPARROW 83
FIELD SPARROW.—Spizella pusilla. 5.68
Common Summer Resident

Field marks.—Bill bright reddish-brown; general color light
slaty-gray on under parts, to reddish-brown on upper
parts; gray line over eye; crown reddish-brown.

This very common species arrives early in Spring and
departs late in the Fall. It is fond of dry fields and pastures
where it builds its dainty nest on the ground, or in a low
bush. The five eggs are white, finely speckled with light
brown. Field Sparrow is a very sweet singer. Sometimes,
in arid places, his mellow, chromatic performance is the only

bird song heard.

CHIPPING SPARROW.—Spizella socialis. 5.38
Very Common Summer Resident

Field marks.—Black line through eye; back brown, crown
brighter shade; under parts gray.

In olden days, before the English Sparrow had become
lord of the urban domain, Chippy was a fearless visitant in
city door-yards, and even built his nest and reared the young
in a sheltering shrub or fruit tree. Now, he keeps well out
in the country, though he has sometimes held his own in large
parks. A few remain in Washington Park and build their
nests in the shrubbery. As his specific name implies Chippy

is of a sociable disposition, showing no aversion to the

84 THE Birps oF ALBANY COUNTY

presence of man; indeed, he is rather partial to the big,
ingenious animal, whose scattered bread crumbs make such
delectable morsels of food. But Chippy cares nothing for a
fight, and, having a natural repugnance for the noisy City
Sparrow, he moved to rural parts and there now abides in
peace and in great numbers.

Chipping Sparrows arrive in this County from the South the
first week in April and replace the Tree Sparrows, which they
closely resemble. Early in May the nest is built, and the
four tiny blue eggs, speckled at the larger end with black,
are laid. The nest is lined with horsehair, or tiny rootlets.
It is a very pretty structure, but is sometimes very insecurely
placed on the branch and is apt to be dislodged by rude
winds. If this happens another nest is built and housekeeping
proceeds as though nothing had occurred. ‘Two or three

broods are reared in a season.

TREE SPARROW.—Spizella monticola. 6.36

Common in Early Spring and Late Fall; Fairly Common
in Winter
Field marks.—Under parts light gray; single blackish spot in
center of breast; upper parts similar to socialis; nearly
an inch longer than the Chippy.

The best time to observe the Tree Sparrows is in March
or November. They travel at this time in flocks and
frequent light-grown woodsides; no other Sparrows are likely
to be present. In midwinter they revel in hollows where

cedars and stunted oaks abound. At this time they cannot

WHITE-THROATED SPARROW 85

be mistaken, for no other Sparrow is hardy enough to follow
them. By the time the Chipping Sparrows begin to think
of nest building the Tree Sparrows have disappeared.

WHITE-THROATED SPARROW.—dZonotrichia albicollis.
6.75

Very Common During Spring and Fall Migrations

Field marks.—Large white patch covering throat; crown,
striped black and white; line over the eye yellowish; bend
of wing yellow; rest of plumage sparrow-like.

In late April and early May this is one of the commonest
migrants in this County. They are large, handsome birds,
with a brisk, cheery manner. While en route their only note
is a metallic chip, but in their breeding grounds farther north
they are regarded as beautiful singers. The White-throat
has been called the Peabody-bird from its common song, which

is heard in its breeding haunts.

WHITE-CROWNED SPARROW.—Zonotrichia leucophrys.
6.88

Uncommon Migrant

Field marks.—Head striped prominently with black and
white; no throat patch.
This handsome Sparrow is found occasionally with little
companies of White-throats in the early Spring and late Fall.
Like its near relative it keeps close to the earth and is fond of

86 THE BirDs oF ALBANY COUNTY

poking about among the fallen leaves in search of food. Care
should be taken not to confound it with the White-throat, as
both have striped crowns. If the bird looks like a Sparrow,
has a striped head, and lacks the whitish throat-patch, you may
be sure it is leucophrys. (See Hermit Thrush; Page 29).

SAVANNA SPARROW.—Passerculus sandwichensis savanna.
5.68

Not Uncommon Summer Resident

Field marks.—Pale yellow line over eye; bend of wing washed
with bright yellow; thin, white line through center of
crown; tail short.

This bird has been found breeding sparingly in Albany

County. During the migrating season it is more numerous,

but never abundant. ‘The nest is built on the ground in open

fields, and the eggs are bluish-white speckled with reddish

brown.

VESPER SPARROW; BAY-WINGED BUNTING.—Poecetes
gramineus. 6.12

Common Summer Resident

Field marks.—Entire plumage prominently streaked with
grayish-brown and blackish; keeps close to the earth and
runs considerable distance before taking to wing, when
it shows prominently the white outer tail-feathers, which

form a V.
In the truck gardens and open fields west of Albany this

bird is abundant. In repose it somewhat resembles the Song

LAPLAND LONGSPUR 87

Sparrow, but lacks the prominent spot in the center of the
breast. In its low, jerky flight it is easily distinguished by the
white feathers in the tail. It has a very pleasing song.

The nests that I have found have always been placed in
ploughed ground. ‘They were mere depressions in the soil,
with a few grasses at the bottom, and the eggs numbered four
or five; light slaty ground, blotched and marked with dark

brown.

LAPLAND LoncspuR.—Calcarius lapponicus. 6.24

Rare Winter Visitant
Field marks.—Upper parts buffy, streaked with blackish-

brown; crescent of black spots across breast; under parts
whitish ; indistinct chestnut bar across nape; has sparrow-
like appearance; if examined closely the long hind nail

is discovered.
Sometimes a small flock of these Finches is seen hereabouts
in Winter, and a few have been observed in early Spring

and late Fall. They are not easy to identify.

SNOWFLAKE; SNow BUNTING.—Fasserina nivalis. 6.88
Irregular Winter Visitant

Field marks.—Entire bird appears white at distance; on closer
view, wash of rusty on shoulders, brownish on top of head,
lower two-thirds of primaries black, middle wing-coverts

blackish.

_In extremely snowy Winters large flocks of these hardy
little birds sweep down from the Northland and invade Albany

88 THE BirRDs OF ALBANY COUNTY

County. At such times they are seen in the open fields feeding
on the seeds of dried weeds. They are very active, fly
rapidly, and it is very difficult to get near enough to observe

them. At a distance they appear like large flakes of snow,
blown by the wind.

PINE SISKIN.—Spinus pinus. 5.00
Irregular and Rare Winter Visitant

Field marks.—Feathers of upper parts black, margined with
dull brown, forming streaks; under parts buffy, streaked
with black; indistinct yellowish-white bar on wings; bill
sharply pointed.

This bird is without doubt common enough about here some

Winters, but I have only one record of its having been taken.

AMERICAN GOLDFINCH.—Astragalinus tristis. 5.10
Very Common Permanent Resident

Field marks:—Entire body brilliant yellow, varying in
intensity according to age of bird; wings and crown
ebony black; female, an olive and dull black edition of
male; both throw themselves through the air in long,
jerky lopes, accenting these movements with a four-

syllable call.

This bird is known in some parts of the country as the
Wild Canary; about Albany it seems to be known by no

REDPOLL 89

other name than the “‘Shiner,”’ an appellation which I never
heard elsewhere. In June the male is in his most brilliant
plumage and can hardly be outrivaled by any of our bright-
colored birds. In August he sheds his yellow feathers, becomes
a dull olive similar to the female, and remains in that garb
throughout the Winter. Small flocks of Goldfinches spend
the Winter hereabouts, but they keep in well sheltered places
and are not often seen, though their faint call notes can be
heard in the coldest weather. For some reason not thoroughly
explained, the Goldfinch defers nest building until very late,
the little cup-like structures rarely being found earlier than the
first of July. The nest is placed in a fork of a tree, or
bush, from five to twenty-five feet from the ground. The eggs
are white. The Goldfinch has a faint warble which sounds
somewhat like an echo of a Canary.

REDPOLL.—Acanthis linaria. 5.31
Irregular Winter Visitant

Field marks.—Ground color sparrow-like; crown deep red;
chin black; rump, breast, and upper belly washed with
rose.

I have never seen this bird in this part of the country, but
am told by careful observers that it occasionally invades
Albany County in cold Winters.

90 THE Birps oF ALBANY COUNTY
GREATER REDPOLL.—Acanthis linaria rostrata. 5.50
Very Rare Winter Visitant

Field marks.—Similar to above species, but averages slightly
larger; upper parts darker; bill shorter, and thicker; can
hardly be distinguished from the Lesser Redpoll, unless
a close comparison of the skins is made.

Only one record; a very fine example was taken at Ken-

wood, February 15, 1907.

WHITE-WINGED CrossBILL.—Loxia leucoptera. 6.05
Irregular Winter Visitant

Field marks.—Main color dull rose-red; wings, tail, and
middle of back, black; two white wing-bars; tips of
mandibles very sharp and crossed.

AMERICAN CROSSBILL; RED CROSSBILL.—Loxia

curvirostra minor. 6.20
Irregular Winter Visitant

Field marks.—General color dull red, brownish on back;
wings and tail blackish; tips of mandibles crossed.

The above two closely allied species occasionally visit
Albany County in extremely cold Winters, but they are not

apt to come near the city and only the venturesome and

ENGLISH SPARROW 9

intrepid ornithologist will find them. A number have been

observed in past years. Some Winters they are never seen.?

ENGLISH SPARROW.—Passer domesticus. 6.35
Lamentably Common
Field marks.—Only Sparrow in city streets.

This active scavenger of our cities is known to everyone.
In this County they are numerous far out into the country and
in villages. They build their nests anywhere they can find
a place, and breed from early Spring to Fall. The eggs
present considerable variation, some being almost white and

others so heavily speckled as to appear almost black.

PurRPLE FINCH.—Carpodacus purpureus. 6.22
Common in Early Spring

Field marks.—Looks like a Sparrow that has just had a bath
in raspberry juice; on close view every feather is found
suffused with brilliant rose; rump bright rose; back,
wings and tail brownish.

This bird may occasionally be present here in Winter and
may even breed here, but I have no records to this effect.

1Since writing the above, I have in Washington Park; there is ap-
secured an authentic record of this parently but one record.
species having been observedin Winter,

92 THE Birps oF ALBANY COUNTY

In April, 1907, I found them very common in Washington
Park and in the woods and fields west of the City. They
indulged in their faint warbling, the while feeding on the
tender buds of the trees.

PINE GROSBEAK.—Pinicola enucleator leucura. 9.10
Irregular Winter Visitant
Field marks.—Bill short and thick; entire plumage rose-red;
center of back flecked with black; wings dark brown,
barred with white; tail deeply forked.

Specimens have been taken for the State in this County.

Family Icteride

PURPLE GRACKLE; Crow BLACKBIRD.—Quiscalus
guiscula. 13.50

Common Summer Resident

Field marks.—Entire bird black, reflecting in certain lights
shades of lustrous green and steel-blue.

Just after the ice has gone out of the river, and while small
patches of snow still remain in cool hollows, the bold and
energetic Crow Blackbird returns from the Southland and adds
color to the bleak, early spring landscape. At this time he

Rusty BLACKBIRD 93

can be seen from a long distance, either walking sedately
about the pallid, watery low-lands, or swinging on the heights
of some naked tree; but later, when the nest is built, and the
leaves are all unfolded, he is more often heard than seen. I
have never discovered the Grackles indulging in any sort of
vocalism, though their common notes, which resemble the
squeaking of a rusty hinge worked by intermittent winds, fall
not unpleasantly on the ear at a time when more delicate
forms of bird life are rare. Grackles are inclined to be
gregarious, small colonies dwelling together even in the breeding
season, in gentlest amity. The secluded tops of pine trees
are generally chosen for nesting places.

Though rather bulky, the nests are well made, comfortable
affairs, and are zealously guarded by both parent birds. The
eggs number from three to six, are bluish-gray, or greenish-
white, spotted and streaked in a fantastic manner with black
and dark brown.

Purple Grackles arrive in Albany about the middle of
March, and depart late in November.

Rusty BLACKBIRD.—Scolecophagus carolinus. 9.55
Rare in Spring and Fall
Field marks.—In Spring, lustrous steel-blue; in Autumn,
feathers of upper parts margined with dull brown, giving

bird a rusty appearance; eye dull white.

This bird likes about the same haunts as the Red-wing; so
if you see a Blackbird in such a place and it lacks the red

94 THE Birps oF ALBANY COUNTY

shoulder-straps you may be sure it is the Rusty. The female

is a slaty gray.

BALTIMORE ORIOLE.—ZIcterus galbula. 7.50
Very Common Summer Resident

Field marks.—Head, throat, upper back, wings, and _ tail,
lustrous black; breast, belly, and lower back bright
orange; female much duller, the orange being replaced
by dull yellow.

Its brilliant coloration and penchant for the elms of park
and village roadside have made the Baltimore Oriole fairly
well known to almost everyone. ‘The species is extremely
abundant both in and all about Albany and is liable to remain
so, as the long, pendulous nests are generally placed so far out
on the tips of the slender, drooping branches that the small
boy cannot reach them, and the birds keep at such a height
most of the time that the cats rarely have any luck in their
direction. The Baltimore arrives here during the first week
in May, the sixth being the earliest date in my note-book.
Strangely, when they first get here from the South, the tops
of tall chestnut woods are their favorite foraging place for
several days. Then they like to enjoy a short period, flashing
about among the white bloom of the plum trees of the garden,
the males vying with each other before the females, after
which, mating accomplished, the work of nest building is
begun. This structure is too well known to require description,
and almost every one has heard the musical peeping of the

young after they get old enough to cry for food. Perhaps

ORCHARD ORIOLE 95

one of the fluffy, yellowish fledglings has fluttered down into
your yard and you have rescued it from some voracious cat;
Baltimore has then given expression to his gratitude by a
series of long, mellow, whistling notes, and you have given
one more evidence that his confidence in man has not. been
betrayed.

Five or six much elongated eggs are laid; ground bluish,
etched and speckled with umber.

ORCHARD ORIOLE.—J/cierus spurius. 7.32
Not Uncommon Summer Resident

Field marks.—Entire head, throat, and upper back, black;
breast, belly, lower back, and lesser wing-coverts, bright
reddish-chestnut; wings dark brown. Female, much

duller.

This bird seems to be a somewhat irregular resident; I
had been about here for five years before encountering one,
and this was on May 19, 1907. During the same Spring
several were observed in Washington Park. I am told by
others that some years spurius is apparently not present in this
section. The notes of the Orchard are similar to those of
the Baltimore, yet with such a difference in tone as at once to
distinguish them to the keen listener. Because of this fact
I always hear the Orchard before seeing it.

The nest is a shallow basket, woven of fine grasses, and
swung among the branches of a tree, generally in an orchard;

eggs, four or five, similar to galbula.

96 THE Birps oF ALBANY COUNTY
MEADOWLARK.—Siurnella magna. 10.76
Common Summer Resident

Field marks.—Under parts bright yellow, with black crescent
across the breast; upper parts brown, streaked with black;
white outer feathers of short tail show conspicuously in

flight.

In the broad meadows where the daisies, clover, black-eyed
Susans, and wild carrot hold dominion, the Meadowlark is
very common throughout the Hudson and Mohawk Valleys.
They arrive almost as soon as the snow has disappeared. In
the Fall they become gregarious and, when the air grows
frosty, depart for the South. Our bird has few lark-like
characteristics, being partial to the earth rather than the sky,
and flying low with rapid and somewhat laborious wing
strokes. To the observer it appears a plain, brownish bird,
as it is extremely difficult to approach near enough to catch
even a glimpse of the yellow breast and black crescent. The
Meadowlark’s song is a faint, sweet whistle—-so faint, in fact,
that when quite near to one it seems a long distance away.
When not on the ground the bird likes to sit on fence-posts
and low trees bordering the meadow. Meadowlark is one of
the earliest spring arrivals in Albany County. ‘The nest is
made of dry grass and placed under a tussock on the ground.
Five or six large, white eggs, spotted with brown, are the nest

complement.

NeEsT AND EcGs oF RED-EYED VIREO

PLATE XIII

/
‘
4
I
oe
be
‘
aS
;
=) he
a\

RED-WINGED BLACKBIRD 97

RED-WINGED BLACKBIRD.—Agelaius pheniceus. 9.50

Common Summer Resident

Field marks.—Entire bird black, save a scarlet patch, edged
with buff and white, at the bend of the wing.

The cong-a-ree of the Red-wing is heard hereabouts along
the middle of April, but it is not until the latter part of May,
or early in June, when the long lush grass and cattails have
grown rank in marshes and along the edges of ponds, that
the nests are built. These are neatly woven, deep, grassy
baskets, generally set in a bush low over the water, or sunk
in the long grass of a bog. When the first brood has taken
to wing a second nest is built about the first of July.
Red-wings are extremely sociable, and almost always live
together in colonies. In the Fall they gather into flocks, and,
after wheeling about in gay companies for a short time, depart
for more salubrious climes. The black plumage and bright
red shoulder-straps of the male, and the plain brown hues of
the female are familiar to every one who has frequented

country places.

CowBIRD.—Molothrus ater. 7.92
Common Summer Resident

Field marks.—Entire upper parts warm, dark brown; rest of
plumage black, showing greenish and bluish reflections
in strong light.

This is the true parasite of birdland, in that it never makes

a nest, the eggs being deposited in the nests of other birds.
Zi

98 THE Birps oF ALBANY COUNTY

Yet despite the bad reputation which Cowbird has gained and
which he invariable sustains, the male is a trim and handsome
fellow. Lengthy studies of this interesting bird have been
made by many close observers, therefore I will take leave of
him by saying that he and his slightly smaller, slate-colored
mate are everywhere common in Albany County. The eggs
are grayish-white, thickly speckled with black. The most
devoted ornithologist has never yet succeeded in determining
how many are laid in a season. Rarely more than one or

two are deposited in one nest.

BoBoLINK.—Dolichonyx oryzivorus. 7.25
Common Summer Resident

Field marks.—Large blotches of creamy-white on back and
nape; rest of plumage black.

Wherever grassy fields abound, the exhilarating, delightful,
but hopelessly indescribable music of the Bobolink is heard
in Albany County. Go out into the country some early June
day, where the air is heavy with the perfume of red-clover,
and listen to Bobolink’s perplexing melodies; if you are sad
at heart, life will instantly seem better, even gay. You will
know him by this description; he looks like a Blackbird that
has been caught in a snowstorm and still retains the white
crystals on his glossy back. The female is brownish-gray, and
in the Fall the male assumes the same garb. When they
go south they become Reedbirds and are shot by the thousands
for the damage they do to the rice crops, and, incidentally,
for their tender flesh, which’ is said to be excellent. A\ll the

AMERICAN CROW 99

same, we of the North always welcome the return of Bobolink
in the Spring, and I feel a distinct pleasure in recording that
he is as common as ever, notwithstanding the animosity felt
toward him by Southerners.

The nest is made in a tussock of grass and is very hard
to find. Eggs, four to seven, elongated, grayish-white ground,
speckled and blotched with pale olive and dark brown.

Family Corvide

Subfamily Corvin

AMERICAN CRow.—Corvus americanus. 19.30
Common Permanent Resident

Field marks.—Bird entirely black; on close view and in
favorable light, plumage iridescent steel-blue, or purplish.

*“Who knows

The humor of the Crows,
As forth they fly in bands
Marauding o’er the lands?

“They lurk, they lie in wait,
They ponder, they debate;
I hear their laugh of scorn

Among the sprouting corn:

“Do they despise mankind
As creatures of weak mind

Who plant good corn in rows

To feed the Crows?”

100 THE BirDs oF ALBANY COUNTY

If the Crows feel a contempt for mankind they certainly
can show “‘probable cause,’’ as the New England magistrates
say, for they have been under the ban ever since the first of
their number was discovered pulling up the farmer’s tender
young corn. Like many geniuses, Mister Crow has_ been
misunderstood; in other words his qualities have not been
appreciated. The Crow is a bird of parts; he is versatile.
His predilection for corn-sprouts is only a slight indication of
his epicurean tastes. And this is nothing strange, for he has a
large brain compared to the majority of the Passeres. Others
of his family are distinguished for the same characteristics, as
his near relative, the Blue Jay, also has a very large brain
and the same marvelously developed auditory organs.

The versatility of the Crow is shown in the way in which
he adapts himself to conditions. He is a winter resident
in Albany County and, when the food in the woods and
fields fails, he knows how to fish in the river. I have frequently
seen this operation. My journal for March 14, 1904,
reads: “I observed Crows fishing in Island Creek. One
hovered over the water, dropped down to the surface, and
went to the ice to eat what it had caught.”” While sojourning
at Lake George, I saw Crows fishing almost every day.

Why cast aspersion upon the ebony and perfectly proper
plumage of the Crow? Whether battling against the March
or November winds, or posed against the white background of
Winter, he is always trim, well groomed, and _ altogether
admirable. He also has an independent air and shows his
freedom in every movement. I say that he is a permanent

resident of Albany County, but ornithologists agree in

RosE-BREASTED GROSBEAK

XIV

PLATE

Th ,
ie ly ba) P
Worn

AMERICAN CROW 101

attributing to him a certain nomadic temperament. In a
word, the Crows that breed hereabouts are supposed to have
spent the Winter in more southern quarters, while those that
are seen about here during the Winter may probably go a
little farther north to establish their families. The -female
Crow is an admirable mother. No one of our feathered folk
is more solicitous of the home and the eggs and fledglings than
the despised Crow; in fact, many a human mother might learn
a lesson from the raucous bird of black plumage. In this
connection I might mention that the Crow is one of nature’s
successes. The species is common everywhere in North
America from the fur countries to Mexico. Closely allied
species are found all over Europe, and it might be cited that
Pierre Loti in his book L’Jnde, Sans les Anglais, demon-
strates that the Crow fairly overruns the whole of India.

Our bird is equally common in Albany County. Mr.
William G. Van Zandt, a local painter of horses, never
regards his picture as complete unless three Crows are
visible in the landscape. As further evidence, I have found
four or five Crow’s nests in an acre of woods within two
miles of this city. On the wooded heights of Rensselaer
County they are equally prolific breeders. Although the
cursory observer sees a Crow’s nest as only an awkward bundle
of sticks, yet it is finely constructed, the interior being lined
with delicate grapevine bark and other soft vegetable fiber.
The eggs are lovely examples of coloration, the blue of the
sky, the green of early vegetation, and the soft browns of
Autumn foliage being marvelously intermingled in the shell

markings.

102 THE Birps oF ALBANY COUNTY

I alluded above to the occasional fishing habits of our
common Crow. Herein is food for reflection for the evolu-
tionist, for the North American avifauna contains the regular
Fish Crow (Corvus ossifragus) which keeps Lent throughout
the year by living entirely on a fish diet. I may say that the
Fish Crow is smaller than Corvus americanus and has a cracked
voice, which more than anything else distinguishes him from his
near relative; but this is hardly apropos of my _ subject,
as the range of the Fish Crow does not extend farther north
than southern Connecticut, and he is never seen in Albany

County.

Subfamily Garruline

BLuE Jay.—Cvanocitta cristata. 11.75

Common Summer Resident; Rare in Winter

Field marks.—Wings and tail bright blue, barred with black
and white; upper parts bluish-gray; pronounced occipital
crest; throat gray; black collar about neck; under parts
whitish.

The Blue Jay is hardly second to the Crow in cunning,
ways that are peculiar, and general knowledge of the habits
and proclivities of his natural enemy, man.

The ornithologist is rather inclined to make friends with
the Jay if occasion admits, but the sportsman harbors for him
a contempt which generally means sure death if he gets within
range of his gun. You see the Jay has such well-developed

ears, and such a clear vision, that he takes it upon himself to

BLUE Jay 103

act as a sentinel of the forest; and, when all the leaves have
turned to crimson and gold, when the Ruffed Grouse is drum-
ming, and Bob-white has mustered his numerous family into
whirring bands, the Jay remains on guard on some leafy height
and invariably sounds the alarm note as the huntsman appears
in the land. This is a wild, exasperating scream like to nothing
else in the woods. It is immediately repeated by other unseen
Jays and there is a scurrying of the feathered folk all through
the forest. The gunner just naturally gets mad and, if he
can, sends a charge of shot in the direction of the enemy of
his sport. But to the credit of the Jay’s shrewdness be it
said, that he generally manages to slip away on skilful wings
to a place of safety before “the fowler’s piece has marked his
flight to do him wrong.”

But if the Jay is the guardian of the other birds during
the shooting season, he plays a different role in the Spring.
While he is convenient to the birds in the Autumn, ofttimes
saving several lives, they do not seem to take him very
seriously as an altruist, remembering doubtless the trouble he
has caused during the breeding season. Now the murder is
out! Blue Jay has a penchant for other birds’ eggs,
especially those of birds smaller than he. He eats as many
as his appetite demands, and then pecks holes in the others,
through malice aforethought or malicious mischief. Still he
is a zealous guardian of his own home, which is a picturesque
structure of sticks and tender vines, placed in any desirable
fork of low shrub or lofty tree.

The Jay is a permanent resident of Albany County. In
the Winter he is wild and distant, and is more frequently seen

in the Fall, than in Spring or Summer.

104 THE Birps oF ALBANY COUNTY

In the cold season he lives on rotten apples, frozen berries,
and acorns, that he may dig out from under the snow. In
the vernal time he is so shy and wary that, when seen, he
appears more like a ghost of some past Autumn than a real
bird interested in plain household duties. But should the
intruder eet his nest, both he and his mate forget all
prudence, cunning, and every trick of the woodland that they
know, and become bunches of feathered frenzy.

The notes of the Jay in Fall and Winter are invariably
harsh, but during the love-season the male has a low, sweet,
flute-like call, which is often modulated into a beautiful song.
Jays kept in cages have been known to whistle airs and to
imitate perfectly the mewing of a cat, the barking of a dog,
and the crying of a baby. But the Jay is in his glory only
when abroad in the Autumn woods—on the lookout for man

and his gun.

Family Alaudide

PRAIRIE HorRNED LaARK.—Obtocoris alpestris praticola.
7.25

Rare Summer Resident

Field marks.—Throat yellow; pointed tufts of feathers on
sides of crown, extending backward; broken, black band
across upper breast; lores and ear-coverts black; upper
parts light, buffy-brown, verging to black and forming
wavy lines; under parts buffy-white.

This bird of the Mississippi Valley has extended its range

and is now seen regularly in Albany County, though more

LEAST FLYCATCHER 105

numerously in the early Spring. It is found here through the
breeding season, but no nests have been discovered, to my
knowledge. The nest is made of grass, placed on the ground,
and contains three or four eggs, bluish-gray, finely speckled
with light grayish-brown.

SUBORDER CLAMATORES

Family Tyrannide

LEAST FLYCATCHER; CHEBEC.—Empidonax minimus.
5.40

Common Summer Resident

Field marks.—Upper parts olive-green with tinge of gray;
under parts ashy-white; belly very slightly washed with
yellow; two whitish wing-bars.

Did you ever climb up into the protecting arms of some
old apple tree and discover there, amidst the pink and white
blossoms and tender yellow-green leaves, the lovely little nest
of the Chebec> That is how, in the long ago, I found my first
Least Flycatcher’s nest, and as I gazed at the grayish cup
with its four creamy-white eggs, I wondered which was the
most marvelous, the tiny bird’s creation, the blue sky beyond it,
or the blossoms that hung over it, like a bridal canopy.

The apple tree was on my grandmother’s farm, and woven
into the nest were two nice feathers from one of my grand-
mother’s white hens. Chebec lives in Albany County from

106 THE Birps oF ALBANY COUNTY

the first of April until the first of October, and builds the
same kind of a nest in a fruit tree, a maple, or the fork of most
any other tree, where the foliage is thick. He has rather a
snappy personality on account of his way of suddenly darting
from his lookout and seizing small winged insects in the air.

He returns instantly to his perch, swallows the fly, flirts his
tail, utters a brisk che-bec, and is ready for further business.
He has a few gurgling notes, a single call, and is in fact a
typical example of the Flycatcher family, although he is the
smallest of the tribe.

ALDER FLYCATCHER.—Empidonax traillii alnorum. 6.09
Rare Summer Resident

Field marks.—Under parts grayish-white, washed lightly with
pale yellow; upper parts dark olive-green; two dull-white
wing-bars; slightly larger than the Least Flycatcher;
manners similar.

A powerful field-glass or a gun are the only articles
that will aid one to differentiate between this bird and the
Chebec, unless one can learn the calls of the two birds, which
are dissimilar. Alnorum has only recently been given a place
by itself in our avifauna, the bird in 1895 not having been
given its definite status. It is wilder and more retiring than the
Least Flycatcher and is rarely seen away from moist, wooded
places.

The nest is not quite so finely built as that of minimus
and is placed in the crotch of a low bush; eggs, four, creamy

white, lightly spotted.

YELLOW-BELLIED FLYCATCHER 107

YELLOW-BELLIED FLYCATCHER.—Empidonax flaviventris.
5.63

Occasional Spring and Fall Visitant

Field marks.—Under parts sulphur-yellow; upper parts similar
to preceding species; upper mandible black, lower
whitish.

This species is occasionally seen in this County about the
first of June and the first of September. It may breed here, but
there are no records. Identification is hardly possible, unless
the bird is in hand and compared with the two preceding
species.

Woop PEWEE.—Contopus virens. 6.54

Fairly Common Summer Resident

Field marks.—Upper parts dark, with faint tinge of olive
and brown; wings and tail dark gray; two white wing-
bars; under parts, whitish, verging to grayish on sides.

The beautiful lichen-covered nest of the Wood Pewee is
one of the treasures that may award the search of the bird
student in this vicinity. The nest is always saddled on a
limb and the eggs are white with a wreath of dark markings
about the larger end. The Wood Pewee is slightly larger
than the Chebec and considerably smaller than the Phoebe,
otherwise it is similar in appearance. If one can learn the
plaintive song, or call, of the Wood Pewee, identification will

always be easy.

108 THE Birps oF ALBANY COUNTY
OLIVE-SIDED FLYCATCHER.—WNuittallornis borealis. 7.40
Rare Transient Visitant

Field marks.—Tuft of pale yellowish feathers on either flank,
showing rather conspicuously; dull white line down center
of breast, sometimes slightly yellowish; rest of plumage
dark grayish-olive, very slightly lighter on under parts.

This species is considerably larger than any Flycatcher yet
named and bears no resemblance to the Phoebe, Great-crest,
or Kingbird; therefore it should be easily identified, as its
characteristics are more pronounced than in any other member

of the Flycatcher family.

PH@BE.—Savyornis phebe. 7.00
Common Summer Resident

Field marks.—Haunts old bridges, sheds, or rocky canyons;
upper parts dark smoky, with slight olive cast; under
parts white with possible yellowish cast; on alighting,
constantly flits its tail.

This gentle bird is one of several that have found man
congenial and in consequence has, to a considerable extent,
changed his habits since the primeval wilds gave place to
farms and villages, He never invades the city, but out-
buildings in rural places are now his favorite haunts. Here
he builds his beautiful, mossy nest, which is either glued
against a rafter or plastered on a beam, and rears his family

in safety. His predilection for old country bridges has given

Younc KINGFISHERS

PEATE XV

PHEBE 109

him the name, in some quarters, of ““Bridge Phoebe.’” Once
successfully established, the Phoebe returns year after year
to the same place and réars his young. I knew an old bridge,
in early days, under which a pair of Phoebes builded their
nests for several successive years. As surely as April came
I always found them there at work on their domicile; and
before the month was over the five white eggs were laid.
Then, as is Phoebe’s custom, another and sometimes a third
brood was reared. Phoebe’s nest is of such a character as
to invite the presence of vermin, and for this reason they rarely
inhabit the same nest twice. I say that my Phcebes returned
year after year; but once upon a time Farmer Babcock drew
an extra heavy load of stone over the bridge, and the nest and
its contents fell into the muddy stream. I found the wrecked
home and feared that the birds would desert the locality, but
no, not so; they constructed another nest against an adjoining
beam and the full complement of eggs was laid. Incubation
was well under way when a very heavy and continued rain
came on, the fastenings of the nest were loosened and it shared
the fate of the first. No other nest was made and the birds
disappeared. Next year I watched anxiously for their return,
but they did not come back, and for several years, as long as
I knew those haunts, the old bridge remained a silent place.
That was a long time ago and I have often wondered, should
I go back there, if I should find another generation of Phoebes
breeding in that spot.

The Pheebe is not altogether “‘civilized.”” I have found
them breeding in the mountains with their nests placed under

shelving racks and close to roaring torrents. This was their

110 THE Birps oF ALBANY COUNTY

probable mode of building when the Indians were the only
inhabitants of North America.
Phoebe is a common summer resident of Albany County,

arriving about the first of April and remaining until October.

CRESTED FLYCATCHER; GREAT-CRESTED FLYCATCHER.
Mvyiarchus crinitus. 9.00

Uncommon Summer Resident

Field marks.—Has direct and even flight; very unapproach-
able; upper parts brown, tinged with olive and grayish;
throat and breast light gray; belly sulphur-yellow.

This is one of the real aristocrats among the birds. He
has, however, one or two habits which lay him open to the
charge of eccentricity, although his mellow call in the orchard
has a genial ring and his decorum is irreproachable. One of
his peculiarities is his insistence that there be a cast-off snake
skin in the lining of his nest. Why he does this has never
been satisfactorily explained. Probably Great-crest doesn’t
himself know just why he does it; but one thing is sure, and
this is, that very few nests have been found without the snake
skin. The nest is built in a hollow tree, the former quarters
of a Woodpecker generally being utilized.

The Great-crest is a bold, handsome fellow, the yellow
of his under parts being especially striking. His eggs present
beautiful examples of coloration and quaint markings. He

is never anywhere common. ‘The first living example I ever

KINGBIRD 111

saw was in May, 1904, in an orchard adjoining the
Schenectady turnpike, about five miles from Albany. There
was evidently a nest thereabouts, but I could not find it.

KINGBIRD.—T yrannus tyrannus. 8.51
Common Summer Resident

Field marks.—Grayish upper parts, becoming blackish on
head and upper tail-coverts; orange-red crest, partially
concealed; tail black, tipped with white; under parts
white to ashy; given to spreading its tail and partially
opening its wings while perched; fond of hovering in air
with wings in rapid motion.

I never understood why the Kingbird should be called a
tyrant for I have always found him merely an ardent, home-
loving bird, never intruding on the rights of other feathered
folk, unless they encroached upon his domain. If they did,
there was a fight, and Kingbird showed only an admirable
spunk. He is a bird of the Summer-time and is in his glory
in some old, dry orchard where he engages in his profession
of fly-catching the livelong day. Sometimes the nest is placed
on the branch of a sycamore tree over a stream or pond, but
is more often built in an orchard tree. Four or five white

eggs, boldly splashed with dark brown, are the nest complement.

ORDER MACROCHIRES
SUBORDER TROCHILI
Family Trochilidz

RUBY-THROATED HUMMINGBIRD.—1rochilus colubris.
3.70

Common Summer Resident

Field marks.—Smallest bird and only Hummer found in
Albany County; upper parts bright lustrous green; throat
glistening ruby-red, the feathers resembling tiny, metallic
scales; rest of plumage grayish; violet tinge on wings and
tail.

This gay little sprite, familiar to everyone in city or country
who owns a flower garden, is the only representative of its
great and beautiful family found east of the Rocky Mountains.
It is quite numerous throughout its habitat, which includes
Albany County. But the finding of the wonderful nest, which
is made of silky vegetable down and covered with tiny lichens
until it resembles a knot on a branch, is such an uncommon
event that it is always treasured in the mind of the most
experienced student. I once, however, knew an old country
mansion, overgrown with Trumpet Creepers, where the lively

Hummers literally swarmed, and never a season passed but
Ir2

W oopcocK

PRARE, OV LE

J
1g &
a ;

Ban Fae

PAL Pe

CHIMNEY SWIFT 113

that several nests were discovered in the great elms about the
place. Ruby-throat is pugnacious and full of courage and
does not hesitate to tackle any bird, regardless of its size,
if it is found encroaching upon the domain of flowers.
Contrary to popular impression, the little creature feeds upon
insects as well as the nectar within the petals. Two white,

elongated eggs, about the size of a small pea, are laid.

SUBORDER CYPSELI
Family Micropodidz
CHIMNEY SwiFT.—Chetura pelagica. 5.43

Common Summer Resident

Field marks.—High up in the air, looks like tiny, black,
cigar-shaped airship, with long, rapidly-moving wings;
utters constant twittering in flight; tail short and tipped
with spines; flies down chimneys; never alights outside.

There are probably few country chimneys in Albany
County that do not contain nests of this Swift. These are
little saucer-like affairs made of sticks stuck together with saliva
supplied by the bird. If you want to see a Chimney Swift’s
nest, climb to the top of some old farm house along in June
and look down the chimney. You will be quite apt to discover

two or three, containing four or five white eggs, or the young.
8

114 THE Birps oF ALBANY COUNTY
SUBORDER CAPRIMULGI
Family Caprimulgidz
NIGHTHAWK.—Chordeiles virginianus. 10.00
Common Summer Resident

Field marks.— White bar on wings; broad white band across
throat; tail forked; rest of bird appears blackish in flight.

On summer mornings, between the hours of four and five
o'clock, when day is just breaking, the harsh peet of the
Nighthawk is a familiar sound over Albany. So shrill and
penetrating is the bird’s cry that it can be heard over the hum
of the trolley cars and the rattle of the early-going milk-carts.
Persons who never give any sort of a bird a thought, frequently
are seen to turn their gaze upward in questioning wonder, as
though they would like to know what this bold, aerial marauder
might be. Sometimes the birds swoop down close to the tops
of the buildings, but straightway sweep rapidly upward,
sometimes to a great height. In the early evening the birds
are just as common over the City, though their presence is not
so noticeable, for the noise of the city is greater.

In performing these evolutions the Nighthawk is simply
foraging for flies and gnats, which he engulfs in his wide
mouth; in other words he eats as he flies; not because he
hasn’t time to stop, but because that is the way it was ordained
he should live. Nighthawks appear to me to be only partly
nocturnal; I have never heard them in the middle of the night,

and have never encountered them in the extreme light of the

W HIP-POOR-WILL 115

day. I have observed Nighthawks over Philadelphia, Boston,
New York and several other cities of the East, quite as
numerously as over Albany.

The Nighthawk builds no nest, laying its two light-marbled

eggs on a flat rock, or graveled roof.

WHIP-POOR-WILL.—Antrostomus vociferus. 9.75

Rare Summer Resident

Field marks.—Shouts its name in the night; narrow white line
across upper breast; entire bird looks black; (is really
mottled brown); form very similar to that of the

Nighthawk.?

The weird cry of the Whip-poor-will is occasionally heard
in the wooded parts of Albany County, though it cannot be
regarded as common hereabouts. In appearance and structure
it closely resembles its near relative the Nighthawk, but
its habits are different, preferring the darkest woods for its
haunts. In the early evening it will approach the farmhouse,
but is never seen near cities. Two eggs are laid among the
brown leaves on the ground in woods.

1]f the student wishes to know the comparative study of the skins in some
diagnostic features of the Whip-poor- museum.
will and Nighthawk he should make a

ORDER PICI
Family Picide

NORTHERN FLICKER; GOLDEN-WINGED WooDPECKER.—
Colaptes auratus luteus. 12.00

Common Summer Resident

Field marks.—Flies in very long lopes, drawing up abruptly
at the end of each; large white patch on rump shows in
flight; scarlet band across back of neck; black crescent
across breast; underside of wings and tail bright yellow;
back light chocolate-brown, barred with black; head
plain brown; under parts heavily spotted with dark
brown; bill long and curved.

Early in the Spring, when lovemaking is in order, the
Yellow-hammer, as it is sometimes called, shouts its name,

flicker, from arboreal heights. At this time and all through
the breeding season he is a true Woodpecker, but in
midsummer he descends to the open field and digs for worms
like a Robin. In the Autumn when chokecherries and the
fruit of the pepperidge tree are ripe, great numbers gather and
devour the luscious fruit. Then they break up into small
flocks and fly south. The nest is in a hollow limb, which is
generally excavated by the birds themselves. From six to
ten glossy white eggs are laid. A Flicker family, just before
the young are ready to take to flight, is a noisy bunch.
116

RED-HEADED WOODPECKER 117

RED-HEADED WoOoDPECKER.—Melanerpes erythrocephalus.
9.75

Very Rare Summer Resident

Field marks.—Entire head and upper breast deep crimson;
upper back, wings, and tail dark bluish-gray; band on
wings, rump, and belly white.

The brilliant hues and noble proportions of this bird, the
most striking of its family, should serve to identify it instantly
even to the most casual observer. Unfortunately, opportunities
for observing it in this section of the State are very few and
far between, as long ago it receded into the wilder portions
of northern New York and upper New England where
natural enemies are not so abundant. I had believed until
recently that not an individual would be found inthis
County, but my friend, Mr. Gardner C. Leonard, has happily
informed me that a pair had their nest near his country home
in Altamont during the Summer of 1907. The birds were
unmolested and reared their brood in safety. Doubtless
other pairs will be found in the strictly rural parts of the
County. Anyone found disturbing these beautiful birds should
be immediately punished to the fullest extent of the law. Red-
heads are said to winter occasionally in this State.

From four to six white eggs are laid in a hollow tree.

118 THE Birps oF ALBANY COUNTY
YELLOW-BELLIED SAPSUCKER.—Sphyrapicus varius. 8.56
Fairly Common Spring and Fall Migrant

Field marks.——Crown and throat bright red; belly yellow;
rest of plumage black and white; habits same as

other Woodpeckers.

During the Spring and Autumn migrations this alert and
handsome bird is frequently seen in Albany County. Several
stop long enough in Washington Park every Spring to bore
a few holes in the bark of the white birches and sip the sap.
In the Fall they like chokecherries, wild grapes, and the purple
fruit of the pepperidge tree.

Five to seven white eggs are laid in the hollow of a tree,

generally very high up.

Downy WooDPECKER.—Drvyobates pubescens medianus.
6.80

Common in Summer, Rare in Winter

Field marks.—Black and white, barred and streaked; scarlet
patch on nape of neck.

Here we have the smallest of our Woodpeckers, everywhere
common in Albany County. Although it is claimed that
Downy spends the Winter throughout New England and New
York State, I always count it an extremely rare event when I
meet an example hereabouts in Winter. During May a great
many are present and a number remain to breed. ‘The small

size, and black and white plumage serve to identify the species.

Hairy WooDPECKER 119

From four to six white eggs are laid, in the hollow of a

dead limb, or stump.

Hairy WoopPECKER.—Dryobates villosus. 9.40
Very Rare Permanent Resident

Field marks.—Differs from Downy only in size and minor
details of markings; nearly three inches longer than
Downy; bill is nearly an inch and a quarter in length,
while Downy’s is about two-thirds of an inch in length.

Despite the much larger size of villosus even the practiced
field student is often puzzled to determine its identity, unless
Downy happens to be in view at the same time, which is a
rare occurrence.

The bird seen about Albany, however, is pretty sure to be
the Downy. I have encountered the Hairy but three or
four times in this locality.

The nesting habits are the same as the Downy.

ORDER COCCYGES
SUBORDER ALCYONES
Family Alcedinide

BELTED KINGFISHER.—Ceryle alcyon. 13.00

Common Summer Resident

Field marks.—Broad bluish-gray band across breast, separating
white throat and belly; upper parts bluish-gray; bill long;
tail short; crown feathers long and often erected into a
pronounced crest; only notes a harsh rattle, usually
uttered on the wing.

The harsh rattle of the Kingfisher is heard along the
Hudson River and all the inland ponds and streams throughout
this section; in fact, the species appears to be more common
hereabouts than in any other portions of the State, or
New England, where I have wandered. ‘There is no
mistaking him for any other bird. The long wings and beak,
the white-banded, bluish-gray plumage, short tail, and erect
feathers of the head are distinguishing features. Perched on
a limb or stump, over or alongside the water, the handsome
Fisher will remain almost motionless for some time, and then,
discovering a finny tid-bit near the surface, he will suddenly
dart down, seize the fish in his beak, fly away to another

120

BELTED KINGFISHER 121

point of advantage, and gulp it down with evident relish.
Sometimes the fish, if it is very small, is swallowed on the
wing.’

The Kingfisher digs a long tunnel about five inches in
diameter in a sand bank, and at a distance of between five
and seven feet from the outer world, hollows out a little cavern
where the eggs are laid on the bare sand. I have dug out
several Kingfishers and have always found them to be extremely
devoted to their home. Once, after excavating seven feet
into a bank, my spade suddenly exposed the nest-cavern and
the female sitting on her eggs. Although given every
opportunity to escape she remained sitting until I lifted her
off with my hands. Even then she struggled fiercely, using
beak and claws, and was loath to leave the beloved domicile.
From five to seven glossy white eggs are laid. I have
discovered that the shell has a beautiful pinkish cast, which
does not disappear after the contents have been removed. A
set of eggs in a collection I once made retained this rosy hue

for several years.

1There is evidence that the King-
fisher, when the flesh of the fish has
been digested, disgorges pellets of
bones, scales, and other indiges-
tible matter, after the manner of
several of the Raptores. Messrs G.

L. Richard and G. H. Chadwick found
a number of these fish-bone pellets
along a creek near Nassau and were
convinced that they were disgorged
by the Kingfisher, as no other fish-
eating bird frequents that stream.

122 THE Birps oF ALBANY COUNTY
SUBORDER CUCULI
Family Cuculide

BLACK-BILLED CucKoo.—Coccyzus erythrophthalmus.
11.83

YELLOW-BILLED CUCKOo0.—Coccyzus americanus. 12.20
Fairly Common Summer Residents

Field marks.—Long slender birds; bills slightly curved; upper
parts grayish-brown; under parts white; erythrophthalmus
has red eye-ring and black bill; lower mandible of
americanus yellow and wing-coverts reddish-brown.

The only sure way of differentiating between these birds
is to bring them close enough with your glass to note the color
of the lower mandible. Slight variations in plumage which
I have not indicated, can only be discovered by an examination
of the skins. Our Cuckoos are extremely graceful birds, but
very shy and retiring.

They never utter their name, like the European species, and
their only song is a series of rather lugubrious syllables of a
deep contralto character. The nest is a slight but artistic
affair, made of coarse sticks and twigs, and placed in a tangle
of vines or some low, scrubby tree. Four greenish-blue eggs
are laid, often several days apart.

I once found a nest containing one fresh egg, one egg in an

advanced embryonic stage, and two fully-fledged young.

ORDER RAPTORES
SUBORDER STRIGES

Family Bubonidz
Snowy Ow..—WNvctea nyctea. 25.00
Irregular Winter Visitant

Field marks.—Entire bird white, with more or less faint
barring of brown on head and back; looks pure white
to observer; eyes yellow; strictly diurnal.

Several have been taken in recent years. I have no record

of its having been seen during the past two years.

GreAT HorNED OwL.—Bubo virginianus. 22.00
Not Uncommon Permanent Resident

Field marks.—Largest owl found here, except the Snowy;
ear-tufts pronounced, nearly two inches in length; eyes
yellow; disk buffy; general color, dark brown, or black
intermingled with tawny; over-layer of gray in some
specimens; under parts lighter and barred; whitish collar
across upper breast.

This Owl can be mistaken for no other bird, because of
its great size and pronounced characteristics. It is fond of
the deep, dark woods, though not infrequently, at night, makes

123

124 THE Birps oF ALBANY COUNTY

a sally into the barnyard and carries off a succulent chicken.
The Great Horned breeds very early in the year, fresh eggs
having been found as early as February, when the ground
was covered with snow. ‘The nest is placed in a tree and is
generally an elaboration of a hawk’s or squirrel’s nest. Two

or three large, white eggs are laid.

SCREECH OwL.—Megascops asio. 9.45
Common Permanent Resident

Field marks.—Appears in two phases, one reddish brown, the
other silvery-gray, both flecked and streaked with black;
eyes yellow; ear-tufts an inch long, on sides of head.

This is the commonest of the Owls about here. Sometimes
just at dusk one will invade the Capital City, possibly to
absorb a little more “‘wisdom’”’ from the legislative atmosphere.

Nest is in a hollow tree; eggs, four to six, white.

SAW-WHET OWL; ACADIAN OwL.—WNvetala acadica. 8.00
Rare Winter Visitant

Field marks.—Smallest species here; no ear tufts; upper parts
dark grayish-brown; under parts white, streaked with
brown.

I know a gentleman who has one of these birds mounted,
in his library. It was taken near Albany. There are few

records, but its winter range covers this County and I am

told that it is present in small numbers.

BARRED OWL 125

BARRED OwL.—Syrnium varium. 20.00
Common Permanent Resident

Field marks.—Head well rounded, without ear-tufts; disk
gray; eyes black; general color grayish-brown; upper
parts barred, and breast streaked with black.

This is the bird whose weird cries in the night, heard
occasionally in obscure rural places, have given it the name
of Hoot Owl. Several have been taken recently very near

Albany.

SHORT-EARED OWL.—Asio accipitrinus. 15.51
Rare Permanent Resident

Field marks.—Under parts very light buffy, finely streaked
with black; upper parts warm brown, streaked with
blackish; ear tufts very short; inclined to be diurnal.

A few specimens of this Owl have been taken here. It

nests on the ground; eggs, four to seven, white.

AMERICAN LONG-EARED OWL.—Asio wilsonianus. 14.80
Rare Permanent Resident

Field marks.—Much darker plumage than the above species,
barred all over with black; tail rather long; ear-tufts, over
an inch in length, rise from center of crown and curve
outward.

This is a strictly nocturnal species. If one can get a glimpse
of the ears, or horns, identification should be positive.

Nests in hollow trees; eggs, four to six, white.

126 THE Birps oF ALBANY COUNTY
Family Strigide
AMERICAN BARN OWL.—Strix pratincola. 18.00
Extremely Rare Permanent Resident

Field marks.—White face, surrounded by a heart-shaped,
brown line, formed by feathers, which stand out something
like an Elizabethan ruff; eyes black; upper part bright
tawny, overcast by gray flecked with black and white
polka-dots; upper parts of wings and tail faintly barred
with blackish; under parts of wings marked with broken
bars of black; breast and belly white, flecked with fine

black dots; flanks washed with tawny; tarsi very long.

The above description is from a finely mounted specimen
taken here in October, 1907. I have never seen the living
bird. All writers seem to approach the subject of this Owl
very gingerly, as though they were hardly sure of their ground,
and I confess to the same feeling. It is so uncommon and has
such retiring habits that one might live several lifetimes and
not encounter it. It is said to frequent the dark corners of
old buildings or deep woods, occasionally uttering a series of
weird, screaming notes. Its quaint face has given it the name
of Monkey-faced Owl.

It is said to make its nest in a tower or steeple, or

occasionally in a hollow tree.

i

AMERICAN OSPREY 127
SUBORDER FALCONES

Family Falconida’

AMERICAN OSPREY; FISH HaAwk.—Fandion haliaeius
carolinensis. 23.10

Fairly Common Summer Resident

Field marks.—Entire under parts pure white; upper parts
dark brown.

It is a matter of satisfaction to record that this magnificent
and entirely harmless bird is fairly common in this County.
I have observed examples on the Hudson River in close
proximity to Albany, and over the Normanskill near Kenwood
on nearly all of my outings in those directions. I have not
yet located a nest in this County, though in the height of the
breeding season of 1904 I found three adults in a wild spot
known locally as “‘Hell Hole,”’ in Rensselaer County, about
four miles south of the city of Rensselaer and but a short
distance from the Hudson River, whose actions indicated that
I was close to an eyrie. One of these Ospreys had in its
talons a large fish, which it had just caught in the river. My
efforts to locate the nest were unsuccessful, but I have no
doubt that it was near at hand. Two of the birds flew low,
uttermg the while their peculiar flute-like cries, which often
resembled the warbling of lesser birds. The amateur has no
difficulty in identifying the Osprey, the pure white under parts

1JIn coloration, the plumages of the inches longer than the males, accord-
females differ from the males much ing to the species, though consider-
less among the Falcones thanin almost able variation is sometimes found.
any other group of birds; but the The measurements here given apply
females average from one to three to the males.
127

128 THE Birps oF ALBANY COUNTY

and the pronounced curve of the great wings being the
distinguishing characteristics. The Fish Hawk is a wonderful
flier; in fact, except when arising from the water after a dive
for its prey, it seems to exert no wing effort whatever in its
slow and graceful aerial movements. With apparently set
pinions it will float, high in the calm summer air, for a long
period. ‘Then, having discovered a tempting fish far below,
it will drop like a stone, striking the water with a loud splash.
If the fish is captured the great bird will bear it away to some
nearby height and devour it. Ospreys are thoroughly
protected by law throughout the year, and well they may be,
for they work no injury to anyone and are certainly picturesque
figures along watercourses. It is only an ignorant person
who will: shoot an Osprey or destroy its nest. Numerous
stories are told of the proneness of the Fish Hawk to return
year after year to the same loved eyrie and rear its young.
The nest is a bulky affair placed in a tall tree or on a rocky
ledge, and the eggs are beautifully mottled with varying shades
of dark brown and purple on a buff or whitish ground.

Subfamily Accipitrinz
AMERICAN SPARROW HaAwk.—Falco sparverius. 9.50
Uncommon Summer Resident

Field marks:—Head and wing-coverts bluish-slaty; reddish
spot on crown; one band on tail; spotted, light under
parts; smallest hawk seen here.

This beautiful little Falcon I have not found numerous
in Albany County, but westward in the Mohawk Valley,

RED-SHOULDERED Hawk

PLratTE XVII

PiGEoN Hawk 129

between Amsterdam and Johnstown I have seen a great many
of them in the height of the breeding season. It frequents
open fields, over which it flies with rapid wing strokes in a
constant search for mice and small birds, grasshoppers and
other large insects.
The nest is in a hollow tree. From four to seven eggs

are laid; white, or buffy ground, spotted with brown.

PiGEON Hawk.—Falco columbarius. 10.15
Common Spring and Fall Migrant

Field marks.—Three or four light bars on tail; upper nits
slaty-blue; under parts white or buffy, streaked with
black; light brown collar about neck.

This is next in size to the Sparrow Hawk, from which it
can be told by its more rapid wing motion and its pigeon-like

appearance when in repose.

Duck Hawk.—Falco peregrinus anatum. 16.00
Very Rare Migrant

Field marks.—Very swift flier; powerful wings; gun the only
sure means of identification.

I have never seen this Hawk in life, but others tell me
that several have been observed in this County in the Autumn.
9

130 THE Birps oF ALBANY COUNTY

BaLD EAGLE; AMERICAN EAGLE.—Halieetus leucoceph-
alus. 32.00

Not Uncommon Transient Visitant

Field marks.—Head, neck and tail white; rest of plumage
dark brown, appearing blackish to distant observer.

The above description applies only to the adult birds in the
third or fourth year, as the immature examples are uniformly
dark, flecked here and there with white. Bald Eagles have
been seen quite frequently in recent years passing over Albany
County and they doubtless pause occasionally when circum-
stances are propitious, though they certainly do not breed
here. Farther down the Hudson Valley there are known
eyries, which remain unmolested year after year. The species
is not so rare as has been supposed, though the regions
hereabouts are not favorable to it as a resident. ‘There is no
mistaking the mature bird with a white head, but the immature
birds can be told from certain Hawks only by their immense

spread of wings.

AMERICAN ROUGH-LEGGED HaAwk.—Archibuteo lagopus
sancti-johannis. 21.50

Very Rare Migrant

Field marks.—Nocturnal in habits, hunting in late twilight;
slow, noiseless, measured flight; plumage dark, though it
exists in lighter phase.

This Hawk has been occasionally seen in this County.

BROAD-WINGED HAWK

BROAD-WINGED HAwk.—Buteo platypterus.

131
14.00

Uncommon Summer Resident

Field marks.—Tail dark, with two light bands; under parts
brownish, barred with darker shade; upper parts dark
brown with infusion of gray.

This beautiful Hawk is rarely seen near Albany, but it is

present in the wooded slopes of the Helderbergs, where it

doubtless breeds.

It has a very un-hawk-like cry which

resembles the notes of the Wood Pewee.
Nest high in a tree; eggs, two to four, white ground,

splashed with brown.

RED-SHOULDERED Hawk.—Buteo lineatus.

18.35

Common Permanent Resident

Field marks.—Lesser wing-coverts bright reddish-brown, in
distinct contrast with the darker shades of brown and
blackish of the upper parts; four or five bands across
tail, which show in flight; under parts buffy, streaked and
lightly barred with blackish.?

This and the following species are known to the farmers as

Hen Hawks, for they sometimes descend upon an unsuspect-

IThe drawing of the Red-shouldered
Hawk which Mr. Richard has made
(Plate XVII) is really a portrait of a
living albino which he kept for some
time in his laboratory. The bird was
taken near Albany and brought to
Mr. Richard with a single gun-shot
wound through one wing. It was pure
white throughout, with not asign of a
marking. The eyes were remarkably
beautiful, theirises being a deep, rich,
translucent blue, and the pupils black.
The bird soon recovered from its in-
jury and made itself at home, losing
im a very short time its fierceness,
and roaming at will about the room.
Eventually the bird became tame and
would stand on its master’s wrist and
eat from his hand. The bird was fond

of throwing itself into all sorts of
grotesque attitudes, spreading its
tail, expanding its wings downward
and fluffing up its feathers until it
resembled a great white ball. Late
in the Winter the Hawk became
sick and it was sent to the happy
hunting ground by means of chloro-
form. It was mounted and can now
be seen in the State Museum. In mak-
ing his drawing Mr. Richard has
supplied the normal markings from
another specimen, but the eyes have
been left as in the albino. ‘It seems
a pity to destroy the facial likeness’’
observed the artist; and I let it go
at that. Surely cold science should
not claim everything.

132 THE Birps oF ALBANY COUNTY

ing fowl and carry it off with ease. I once saw a Red-shoulder
swoop down on a proud Plymouth Rock rooster of a very
large size and slay it with one blow of its powerful, hooked
beak. This happened about two rods from where I was
standing, and I believe the rooster would have been carried
off had I not rushed to the scene of the tragedy and frightened
the Hawk away. The only mark I could find on the
fowl was a single indentation in the skull. While young and
inexperienced I tried one day to capture an adult Red-shoulder
alive. I had shot the bird and it had fallen to the ground.
When I came up to His Hawkship he was standing erect,
with one wing broken, but defiance still gleaming in his wicked
eyes. Creeping up to him, I made a sudden grab for his
neck. With a lightning-like movement the Hawk raised his
nigh foot and seized my wrist, burying his long talons a
quarter of an inch in my flesh. It was not until I had
crushed the bird to death with my knee that I could extricate
my wrist from his grasp. I recall distinctly the expression of
lofty pride in those dying eyes, and my sympathies, now, are
with the bird, though shortly after the tragedy, glass eyes,
wire, and tow, did very well for him.

The nest of the Red-shoulder is a big affair, placed in a
tree at a considerable distance from the ground. ‘The eggs
number from three to six and vary in coloration. In a nest
once found by my brother there was one plain white egg, one
slightly speckled with light brown at the smaller end, a third
richly splashed all over with russet and lilac, and a fourth with
a light greenish ground, marked all over with dark greenish

and light brown.

BARRED OWL

Prate. VEEL

RED-TAILED HAWK 19
RED-TAILED HAwk.—Buteo borealis. 20.00
Uncommon Permanent Resident

Field marks.—Tail bright reddish, with one narrow band near
the tip; under parts white, streaked with brown; upper
parts dark brown.

The habits of this Hawk are almost identical with those
of the Red-shoulder, but it comes out in the open less and is
fond of the wilder, wooded sections of the County. Its nest

and eggs are similar to those of the preceding species.

AMERICAN GOSHAWK.—Accipiter atricapillus. 22.00
Irregular Winter Visitant

Field marks.—Upper parts slaty gray and under parts lighter;
entire bird appears barred and streaked with darker gray.

Some Winters a number have been seen here; again, some

years, it appears to be absent.

CooPEeR’s HAwk.—Accipiter cooperii. 15.54
Uncommon Summer Resident

Field marks.—Tail rounded, with V shaped bars; upper parts
dark gray; under parts light, barred with brown.

This is considered about the most destructive to poultry of
all the Hawks. It nests in trees, laying from four to six bluish-

white eggs.

134 THE Birps oF ALBANY COUNTY
SHARP-SHINNED Hawk.—Accipiter velox. 11.30
Common in Early Spring and Fall

Field marks.—Tail square, barred; primaries barred; upper
parts grayish brown; under parts whitish, barred and
streaked with pale brown.

This Hawk is the bitterest enemy of the small birds,
devouring more than any other of its race. It may possibly
breed here, though I have no record. ‘The nest is placed
high in trees; eggs, four to six, nearly spherical, and wreathed,

generally around the center, with blotches of reddish-brown.

MarsH Hawxk.—Circus hudsonius. 19.00
Uncommon Summer Resident

Field marks.—Long tail, barred; upper tail-coverts white;
general color gray, darker on upper parts; breast and
under parts white, lightly barred with pale brown.

This bird is apt to fly low and leisurely, and is therefore
easy to identify. The nest is placed on the ground in marshes;

eggs, four to six, dull white.

ORDER COLUMBA

Family Columbide

MourninG Dove.—dZenaidura macroura. 11.90
Fairly Common Summer Resident

Field marks.—Only common wild dove in this County; makes
whistling sound with wings as it flies; long pointed tail;
dove-like in appearance.

There can be no mistaking this bird for one of any other
family. While no great numbers are met with about here,
still a few are seen every year during the breeding season.
The nest is a slight platform of sticks, placed rather low in a

tree, often in an orchard; eggs, two, white.

PASSENGER PIGEON.—Ectopistes migratorius. 16.29
Rarest of all Birds; Nearly Extinct in East.

Field marks.—Upper parts slaty-blue; back and sides of neck
iridescent; center of back and scapulars brownish-olive,
becoming dusky on wings, which are tipped with white;
under parts bright reddish-buff; lower belly white.

This beautiful Pigeon, formerly the most abundant of all
our birds, is now among the scarcest. Time was when they
135

136 THE Birps oF ALBANY COUNTY

travelled in flocks numbering many millions of individuals;
now, the finding of a single specimen is an unusual event. Dur-
ing the Summer of 1906, and again in 1907, a Wild Pigeon
was observed by Mr. Edmund N. Huyck and others, at his
country place in Rensselaerville. This is the only report in
many years of the appearance of Ectopistes in this County.
About twelve years ago Mr. Charles Payne, of East Scho-
dack, Rensselaer County, saw a small flock and shot six, not
realizing at the time how extremely rare the Pigeon was.
These were the only individuals he had seen in many years,
and he has observed none since that time. During the present
year Mr. John Burroughs created a great deal of interest in
the ornithological world by announcing that he had positively
verified the report of the presence of a flock of about one
thousand Wild Pigeons near the Beaverkill, Sullivan County,
this State. The birds were observed late in the afternoon of
May 23, 1907, by a number of reliable persons, among whom
was an old farmer who had seen the birds in great numbers
in that vicinity forty years ago. He said that he knew Wild
Pigeons as well as he knew folks. Mr. Burroughs was per-
fectly confident that the record was authentic. (The Outlook,
July 13, 1907.)

The nest of Passenger is a rude platform of sticks, set in a

tree; two white eggs are laid.

ORDER GALLIN/A
Family Tetraonid x

Subfamily Tetraonine

RUFFED GROUSE; PARTRIDGE; PHEASANT.—Bonase
umbellus. 17.00

Uncommon Permanent Resident

Field marks.—Flies up with a bang, making more noise than
any other bird in Albany County; tufts of broad, glossy
black feathers on each side of neck; entire plumage
barred and mottled with varying shades of brown.

I know a place within a short car ride from Albany where

I invariably flush four or five fine Partridges; then there is

another wooded slope where I have frequently scared up

from one to three; but I am not going to indicate these places
as I am fond of live Partridges in the field and would like
to see them live. The gunner hereabouts laments the fact
that the Grouse have almost disappeared from the County and,
with a wise look, packs his expensive shooting outfit and
takes the train for the North Woods. Let us not hinder
him; the farther he goes the better I like him: and in the
meantime it is possible that a few birds will continue to exist
near the Capitol.

It cannot be denied that the Ruffed Grouse has become a
rare bird here. The land has been too much denuded of

137

138 THE Birps oF ALBANY COUNTY

its forests to favor the increase of the Grouse, but they
doubtless breed here sparingly. It is unnecessary to describe
this, our most magnificent game bird, as almost everyone has
seen them, before the present game laws were enacted, hanging
before our markets, victims to the epicurean tastes of superior
man.

During the main part of the year the Partridge is very
wild and distant. Formerly they were supposed to be
untamable, but a writer in a recent magazine, tells of having
thoroughly domesticated a number of birds and bred them
in captivity.

But however wary the Grouse may be generally, there is
a certain period of the year when the hen puts by all fear
of natural enemies and can be as easily approached as a
barnyard fowl. This is when the chicks have just left the
shell and need their mother’s protection. I recall very well
in early years, coming suddenly upon a hen Partridge with
a very large brood of fluffy, downy chicks. It was in an
old, little-frequented mountain road in Connecticut. I stooped
and lifted a couple of the chicks in my hands. ‘They rested
contentedly enough in my palms, but what an agony of mind
the mother betrayed! With every feather erect, wings
drooping, and tail spread, she fairly danced about me, coming
so close that I could have reached out and touched her. And
all the time she uttered strange, wild cries, much like the
whining of a cat. Then I placed the chicks on the ground
and retired a short distance from the spot. The mother
straightway calmed down and led her brood into the under-
brush; for a moment I heard a scurrying of tiny feet through

the leaves and then the whole company had vanished.

BoB-WHITE 139

I waited five minutes and heard a call, different this time,
over under the mountain side. The mother had reached a

place of safety and was marshalling her forces.

Subfamily , Perdicinz

BoB-WHITE; QUAIL.—Colinus virginianus. 10.00
Extremely Rare Permanent Resident

Field marks.—Whistles its name on two notes, the last the
higher, sometimes repeating the last note; throat and
broad line over eye, pure white; rest of plumage mottled,
barred, and checked with varying shades of brown and
buff; bill very short; form well rounded.

The latter part of June and in midsummer the mellow |
whistle of Bob-white is occasionally heard in old pastures and
along the edges of meadows in this County; but the species
is not so numerous as in days of yore and, in the Autumn,
covies are very rarely encountered by the hunter. While
very wild and difficult to approach after they have gathered
into flocks in the Fall, Quail, like the Ruffed Grouse, change
their habits completely during the breeding season. Not long
ago I found a nest on August 22 containing seventeen
eggs. The flushed bird disappeared in some nearby second
growth, and after a hasty glance at the glistening white
pyriformed eggs I hastened away, not wishing to disturb
the home. But actuated by a desire to make further
observations I visited the spot two days later. The nest was

under a little cluster of blackberry vines and grass about

140 THE Birps oF ALBANY COUNTY

thirty feet from railroad tracks. I approached very cautiously
and to my amazement the sitting female allowed me to come
within four feet of the nest. I knelt down until my face was
within two feet of the mother bird, and she still remained
unmoved.

With a gentle movement of my hand I shooed her from
the nest. She arose slowly, with no show of alarm, walked
to a small rock about six feet away, mounted it and turned
and looked me over. There was something very dainty and
elegant in her manner which excited my admiration to the
utmost. But wishing to test her equanimity further I exclaimed
aloud: ‘‘Well, you are a cool one; don’t you know that I
may be a murderer>’’ For answer she calmly preened her
wings, fluffed up her feathers, cocked her head to one side,
and looked at me as much as to say: ‘“‘O, I don’t know; I
guess you are harmless.” I waved my hand again and gave
a “shoo.” She walked down off the rock, strolled leisurely
across a short open space, passed under a barbed wire fence,
and mounted another rock on the other side. After a further
survey of the nest, I arose and walked away about two rods and
had the satisfaction of seeing her return to the nest in the same
deliberate manner in which she had left it. I never visited
my Bob-white again, but I trust she reared her brood in safety
and that the whole family dodged the wily gunner in the Fall.

GREEN HERONS AND NEST
(From a group in the State Museum, Albany)

PLATE Gr

ORDER LIMICOLA

Family Charadriide*

SEMIPALMATED PLOVER; RING-NECK.—“gialitis
6.76

Rare Migrant

semipalmata.

Field marks.—Throat and ring around neck white; black band
across breast and extending around lower neck; sides of

head black; upper parts grayish-brown; under parts
white; bobs.

The sweet call of this bird is occasionally heard in some
of the marshy districts of this County, in Spring or Fall, but
it is never plentiful.
its identity.

It requires a close observer to establish

KILLDEER.—Oxvechus vociferus. 10.50

Rare Summer Resident

Field marks.—Constantly utters high-pitched Fill-dee; two
- bands of black across breast, divided by white, upper
band forming ring about neck; rump reddish-brown;

bobs.
While this Plover has a wide range, it has long been re-

garded as extremely rare in this section. In open meadows,

1A number of these water-birds are
very wary and so seldom seen as to
render it practically impossible to
give any field-marks which will aid
in identification. The same rule ap-
plies to the Ducks. Even hunters of
Many years experience sometimes

I4l

fail to identify a Duck until they
have bagged the bird. Because of
these facts the author, in several in-
stances, has merely catalogued seve-
ral of the rarer forms of Sandpipers
and Ducks. These should be studied
in a museum.

142 THE Birps oF ALBANY COUNTY

especially near water, a few individuals are occasionally seen,
and it is known to breed. ‘The two black bands across the
breast and the common call, render it easy to identify. ‘Three
or four eggs, light buffy ground, speckled and etched with
dark umber, are laid in a mere depression on the ground, in

a dry, stony field.

AMERICAN GOLDEN PLoverR.—Charadrius dominicus
10.50

Not Uncommon in the Autumn

Field marks.—Upper parts black, faintly spotted with dull
yellow; under parts very slightly lighter; on close view
the entire upper parts have a lustrous golden tinge.

Expert gunners tell me that every Fall they take several

bags of this handsome Plover. A number have already been
taken this Fall (1907) in Rensselaer County. The novice
will find it difficult to identify this bird in the field and the

best way to study it is to examine the skin in a museum.

Family Scolopacide

SPOTTED SANDPIPER.—Actitis macularia. 7.50
Very Common Summer Resident

Field marks.—Teeters constantly; upper parts light grayish-
brown; under parts white, spotted with dark brown; bill
nearly an inch in length.

From late in April until toward the last of August, this

bird is found very numerously along inland streams and old

BARTRAMIAN SANDPIPER 143

ponds with stony or sandy borders, everywhere throughout this
section. It is easily identified, for other members of its family
are very rare hereabouts. Flying low over the water, with
peculiar intermittent wing motion and uttering the while its
sweet-toned peet, peet, peel, it is often about the only sign
of bird life in its watery haunts, unless the rattling notes of
the Kingfisher happen to be heard overhead. When the bird
alights it teeters rapidly several times, picks a scrambling bug
from the sand and runs onward, constantly bobbing and
feeding. The nest is usually placed a considerable distance
from the water. I have found several in potato fields. It
is a mere depression in the ground with a few straws or particles
of grass at the bottom. The eggs, numbering four, are
decidedly pyriform, with creamy ground and heavily spotted
and blotched with varying shades of dark brown, heavier at
the larger end.

BARTRAMIAN SANDPIPER; UPLAND PLovEeR.—Bartramia
longicauda. 11.50

Uncommon Summer Resident

Field marks.—Tail long; outer wing feathers barred with
white; upper parts mixture of black and light brown:
under parts buffy to white; breast and sides streaked
with black; bill over an inch long.

No nest here is recorded.

144 THE Brirps oF ALBANY COUNTY
SOLITARY SANDPIPER.—Helodromas solitarius. 8.40
Fairly Common Summer Resident

Field marks.—Swallow-like flight; an inch longer than the
Spotted Sandpiper, but habits similar; not quite so active.

The habits of this species are similar to those of the Spotted
Sandpiper. If one can get a good view of Solitarius in flight
the barred axillars are the best means of identification. It
undoubtedly breeds in Albany County, as it has been taken

here in June and July, but no nest has been found.

YELLOW-LEGS; SUMMER YELLOW-LEGS.—T otanus
flavipes. 10.76

Not Uncommon in Fall

Field marks.—Resembles following species, but is about four
inches smaller; bill nearly an inch and a half long.

GREATER YELLOW-LEGS; WINTER YELLOW-LEGS.—
Totanus melanoleucus. 14.00

Not Uncommon in the Fall

Field marks.—Upper parts dusky, barred with gray; under
parts white; throat streaked, breast and sides barred with
black; tail black, white at base. Bill over two inches

in length.

The gunners here take several of the above species every

Autumn.

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SEMIPALMATED SANDPIPER 145
SEMIPALMATED SANDPIPER.—Ereunetes pusillus. 6.30
Fall Migrant

Field marks.—Over an inch smaller than Spotted Sandpiper,
but plumage similar; has swallow-like flight.

Least SANDPIPER.—Actodromas minutilla. 6.00
Fall Migrant

Field marks.—Smallest Sandpiper seen here; similar in
plumage and habits to Actitis macularia.

DowWITCHER.—Macrorhamphus griseus. 10.50

Recorded as Rare Straggler

WILSsoN’s SNIPE.—Gallinago delicata. 11.25
Not Uncommon in Fall

Field marks.—Head striped with black and buff; form similar
to Woodcock; general plumage black and buff.

A few of these birds fall victims to the hunter every Fall
and it is believed that they breed here sparingly. Wilson’s
Snipe is a smaller, more dainty bird than the Woodcock.

10

146 THE Birps oF ALBANY COUNTY
AMERICAN Woopcock.—Philohela minor. 11.00
Rare Summer Resident

Field marks.—Bill nearly three inches in length; tail short;
wings of good length; eyes set high up in head; plumage
checked, barred, and mottled with various shades of
brown, upper parts darker; three black bars across top of
head; markings less pronounced and under parts bright
buff, in Autumn.

There is no bird more difficult to observe than the
Woodcock, though occasionally one will be encountered just
at sundown out in the open and then apparently least mindful
of other creatures. Once, only, I observed one executing its
eccentric flight-song. It arose in a spiral flight to a
considerable height, uttering the while a series of whistling
notes, without melody, and then fell back to the earth.
Probably the female was near at hand and the performance
was being given for her delectation, but I came upon the bird
so suddenly that the act was not repeated. During the love
season the male becomes a true Cock of the Wood and struts
and parades his fine figure and plumage before the admiring
female, generally choosing a fallen log for his stage. Our
artst, Mr. Richard, mounted a young male in this strutting
attitude, following closely the descriptions furnished by two
close observers, and from this made the drawing reproduced
in Plate XVI.

A fledgling was once brought to me and I devoted several
days to its care, but it moped in a corner, refused all food,
and finally died. Once I came upon two parent birds and

four full-fledged young, standing motionless in a small circle,

AMERICAN WoopDcock 147

on the ground, in a group of white birches. They put to
flight on my appearance, and, on examining the place where
they had been, I found a large Milk Snake. This reptile is a
noted devourer of birds and, while I discredit the tales of
“snake charming” that I have heard, I could not help wonder-
ing if His Snakeship had managed somehow to hypnotize the
Woodcocks. At any rate the spell was broken when I
appeared. In two minutes the snake was dead. I have never
found the nest of the Woodcock and I know of no one who
has found it in Albany County. Nevertheless, it without
doubt breeds here sparingly. Four darkly colored eggs are
Jaid, early in the Spring, in a depression in the dead leaves

on the ground.

ORDER PALUDICOLA
Family Rallide
Subfamily Fulicine

AMERICAN Coot; Mupb-HEN.—Fulica americana. 15.00

Summer Resident

Field marks.—Chicken-like bill; upper parts blackish; under
parts lighter.

Breeds in the cattail marshes of Watervliet and Green
Island. Nest, a low reedy structure; eggs, eight to fifteen,
buffy ground, speckled with brown and black.

Subfamily Ralline

SorA; CAROLINA RatL.—Porzana carolina. 8.50

Common Summer Resident

Field marks.—Short, yellow bill; upper parts brown, streaked
with black; under parts bluish-gray to white on belly;
center of crown and line down middle of neck, black.

This little Rail is more often heard than seen. Its nest
has been found in the cattail marshes along the river. It is
148

VIRGINIA RAIL 149

made of grass and placed on the ground. The eggs, from
eight to fifteen, are buffy, spotted with pale brown.

VIRGINIA RaIL.—Rallus virginianus. 9.50

Fairly Common Summer Resident

Field marks.—Bill an inch and a half in length, slightly
curved; upper parts dark grayish-brown, streaked with
blackish; warm brown on wings; under parts lighter
brown, streaked and spotted with black and white.

The habits and range of this bird are similar to those of the

preceding species.

ORDER HERODIONES
Family Ardeidz

Subfamily Ardeinz

BLACK-CROWNED NIGHT HERON.—WNyvcticorax nycticorax
nevius. 24.00

Uncommon Summer Resident

Field marks.—Black crown and back; forehead and under
parts white or whitish; rump, tail, and wings gray; two
slender plumes, eight inches in length, extend from the top
of the head backward; legs and feet yellow.

This bird is a summer resident of Albany County, but is
not found so numerously as the following species. It is about
seven inches longer than the Green Heron, its upper parts
are darker, and under parts much lighter; therefore it is not
difficult to distinguish between the two. The Night Heron
generally breeds in colonies, but in Albany County only
isolated nests have been found. The nests are placed in trees

and the eggs are pale bluish-green.

GREEN HERoN.—Butorides virescens. 17.05
Common Summer Resident

Field marks.—Long beak, neck, and legs; short tail; upper
parts dark iridescent green, with infusion of gray;
bluish cast to wings; feathers of back long and pointed;
sides of throat and neck dark chestnut; narrow black
and white stripe down center of throat; under parts gray.

If you see a darkly colored bird, flying low, with heavy
wing strokes, about the size of a Crow, but of such different

T590

GREAT BLUE HERON 151

appearance that you feel sure it is not a Crow, you can rest
assured that it is the Little Green Heron. Examined closely
the bird is found to have all the Heron characteristics. When
the bird is on the wing it looks much darker than it really is.
In marshy places or along inland streams hereabouts, where
the forest growth forms a tangle of interlacing branches, the
Green Heron is quite common all through the Summer.

This is the bird that is called the Poke by the hunters,
who seem to hold it in contempt and generally send after it a
charge of shot. But hunters are not generally very exact
ornithologists and they fail to understand that our Little Green
Heron is entirely inoffensive, and has just as good a right to
live as the more elegant song-birds.

The nest is a flat platform of sticks placed in a tree, from
ten to thirty feet from the ground. Five or six pale green

eggs are laid.

Great BiLueE HeEron.—Ardea herodias. 42.00-50.00

Uncommon Summer Resident; Common During Fall

Migration

Field marks.—Largest bird seen here; general tone of upper
parts light slate-gray, with faint bluish cast in strong
light; black markings on crown, edge of wings, breast,
and belly; bill from four and a half to over six inches
in length; very long neck; slender body; long thin legs;
often stands motionless for some time in shallow water.

In October this great bird is a very common migrant
throughout the Hudson Valley. In riding on the train

152 THE Birps oF ALBANY COUNTY

between Albany and New York I have seen from the car
window dozens of them standing motionless in the shallow
water on the edge of the river. Even where the track was very
close to the water, the Great Blues did not seem to mind the
tremendous noise, familiarity evidently having bred indifference
m this case. The Great Blue Heron breeds in goodly
numbers in the northern part of the State, but it can be recorded
as a summer resident in Albany County, as only recently nests
were found in Voorheesville. The nest is a great, rude
platform of sticks placed high in a tree. The eggs are slightly

larger than those of a barnyard hen and are pale blue.

Subfamily Botaurine

Least BITTERN.—Ardetta exilis. 13.00
Rare Summer Resident

Field marks.—Under parts buffy-white; crown, back, and tail
glistening black; sides of neck light brown, back of neck
chestnut; light brown patch on wing; dull black patch
on either side of breast; heron-like in form.

This small water-bird breeds sparingly in the cattail marshes
of Green Island and Watervliet. It is difficult to observe as
it has a way of hiding itself among the reeds on the approach
of an enemy. ‘The nest is a platform of reeds, woven among
the growing cattails. From three to six very light-blue eggs

are laid.

AMERICAN BITTERN 153
AMERICAN BITTERN.—Boiaurus lentiginosus. 28.00
Rare Summer Resident

Field marks.—Upper parts dark brown and buffy; black
streak on each side of neck; under parts light buff,
streaked with brown; bill yellow; form heron-like.

The strange guttural notes of this stupid-appearing bird,
which Mr. Hoffman thinks resemble the syllables “‘plum
puddn’ or unk’-a-chunk’,” or “‘ like the gurgling of a pump,”
are occasionally’ heard in Albany County in about the same
localities as I have ascribed to the Least Bittern. It is slightly
larger than the Night Heron, from which it can be distinguished
in flight by its brownish upper parts. The flat nest of reeds is
made on the ground in marshes. From three to five light
buffy eggs are laid.

ORDER ANSERES
Family Anatidz
Subfamily Anserinz
CANADA GoosE.—Branta canadensis. 35.00-43.00

The honking of the fork-shaped flocks of Wild Geese, as
they pass over in the early Spring and late Fall, is familiar to
everyone in this County, even residents of cities. Occasionally
they pause for a short time along the river or on some inland

pond.

Subfamily Fuliguline

WHITE-WINGED SCOTER.—Oidemia deglandi. 22.00

One instance on record.

OLD-sQgUAW.—Harelda hyemalis. 21.00

Rare straggler in Winter. Can be told by the long, middle

tail-feathers.
154

BUFFLE-HEAD 155
BUFFLE-HEAD.—Charitonetia albeola. 14.76

One pair was shot near the Helderbergs so late in the Spring
as to lend color to the possibility of its breeding here. It is
commonly regarded, however, as a very rare migrant. It
has an apparently black head with a white patch like a small

night-cap over the top, coming down under the eyes.

AMERICAN GOLDEN-EYE; WHISTLER.—Clangula clangula
americana. 20.00

Rare Winter Visitant

Field marks.—Head black; (on near view, green or deep
violet, according to intensity of light); large white patch
in front of eye; back ebony black; rest of plumage snow
white.

The loud, whistling sound made by the wings of this swift-
flying Duck has given it the common name of Whistler.

Several examples have been observed here in Winter on the

river.

BARROW’S GOLDEN-EYE.—Clangula islandica. 20.00

Rare Winter Visitant

Field marks.— White patch at base of bill, triangular; rest of
plumage very similar to clangula americana.
Several examples of this Duck have been taken on the
Hudson River, just north of Albany. It has also been ob-
served and shot in Saratoga County.

156 THE Birps oF ALBANY COUNTY

LeEssER ScAuP Duck; LITTLE BLACKHEAD; LITTLE
BLUEBILL.—Apthya affinis. 16.50

Very rare straggler in Fall.

REDHEAD.—Avthya americana. 19.00
Rare Migrant

Field marks.—Head and neck bright reddish-brown; speculum
gray; breast and upper parts black to gray; plumage
considerably barred; belly white.

Subfamily Anatinz
Woop Duck.—Aix sponsa. 18.50
Uncommon Summer Resident

Field marks.—Long occipital crest of purple and white
feathers; speculum steel-blue; upper parts iridescent;
long fan-shaped tail.

This has long been regarded as the most beautiful Duck
in America. In earlier days it probably bred freely in this
vicinity, but has now nearly disappeared. However, there are
records of its having bred along the Normanskill within the
past six years. Every Fall the expert gunner takes two or
three.

The eggs, from four to sixteen, yellowish-white, are laid

in the hollow of a tree.

PINTAIL 157

PINTAIL.—Dafila acuta. 28.00

Not Uncommon Fall Migrant

Field marks.—Speculum from bronze to green; central feather
of tail very long; upper parts brown and gray; under
parts white.

BLUE-WINGED TEAL.—Querquedula discors. 16.00
GREEN-WINGED TEAL.—WNeftion carolinensis. 14.55

Both species are not uncommon Fall migrants through this
County. To be identified they should be seen close enough

to observe the brilliant blue and green specula.

Biack Duck.—Anas obscura. 22.00-25.00

Rare Summer Resident

Field marks.—Very swift flier; looks black or sooty to
beholder with glass.*

Mr. H. H. Valentine informs me that this magnificent Duck
undoubtedly breeds here sparingly. I once saw a nest in
central Connecticut. It was placed on the ground, among
clusters of huckleberry bushes, on the top of a high mountain,
about a mile from a small creek down in the valley. It was
lined with dusky feathers, apparently plucked from the bird’s
body. The eggs numbered eleven and were dull greenish-
white.

1There is a red-legged variant of which may migrate through this
this species (Anas obscura rubripes) County.

158 THE Birps oF ALBANY COUNTY
MALLARD.—Anas boschas. 23.00
Rare Migrant

Field marks.—Speculum violet, bordered with black and
white; head and neck lustrous green; white ring about
neck; looks like a domestic drake.

Subfamily Mergine
HoopeD MERGANSER.—Lophodytes cucullatus. 17.50

Uncommon Migrant

AMERICAN MERGANSER; GOOSANDER; SHELDRAKE.—
Merganser americanus. 22.00

Winter visitant; several records.

ORDER LONGIPENNES

Family Laride

Subfamily Sterninze
BLack TERN.—Hydrochelidon nigra surinamensis. 10.00

Straggler during migration; one record.

Subfamily Larinze
HERRING GULL.—Larus argentatus. 24.00
Common in Early Spring

Field marks.—Entire under parts, head, and neck pure white;
back and wings light gray.

Very early in the Spring, just after the ice has gone out
of the river, I have observed several of these gulls over the
Hudson about a mile north of Albany, and over the Mohawk
River as far west as Amsterdam. In April one or two are
generally to be seen on the river, from the lower to the
upper parts of the Capital City. They remain about here,
however, only a short time and then speed northward to breed.

159

160 THE Birps oF ALBANY COUNTY

Aside from one other straggler it is the only Gull to visit this
County.

BoNAPARTE’S GULL.—Larus philadelphia. 14.00
Straggling Early Spring Migrant

Field marks.—Head black; rest of plumage similar to Herring

One very fine specimen of this Gull was shot over the
Hudson River just below Albany in May, 1896. It was
probably a straggler, as I have no other record of its being

seen hereabouts.

ORDER PYGOPODES
SUBORDER CEPPHI
Family Alcidz
Subfamily Alcinz

BRUNNICH’s Murre.—tUria lomvia. 16.50

Very rare Winter visitant. One was taken recently in
Saratoga County.

Subfamily Phalerine

BLAcK GUILLEMOT; SEA PIGEON.—Cepphus grylle.
13.00

One record, in Winter.

Family Gaviide
Loon.—Gavia imber. 32.00

RED-THROATED Loon.—Gavia lumme. 25.00

Not uncommon migrants, but have not been known to
pause.
161

162 THE Birps oF ALBANY COUNTY

SUBORDER PODICIPEDES
Family Podicipide
PIED-BILLED GREBE.—Podilymbus podiceps. 13.51

Uncommon Summer Resident

Field marks.—Moves about surface of water like a Duck; bill
light, crossed by band of black; plumage various shades
of brown, darker in Autumn.

This small bird of our inland waters is more generally
known by the name of Hell-diver for its skill in disappearing
beneath the surface on the approach of an enemy. ‘Their
hearing is extremely acute and the stories of their dodging
gun-shot are not exaggerated. I have seen them shot at from
a distance of about four rods and they easily dived beneath
the water before the shot struck the surface. So soon as the
reverberations of the discharge had died away the little Dab-
chick (another common name) arose to the surface and floated
serenely about, but always with an eye on the offensive
gunner. Once upon a time I managed to crawl through
some close brush, very near to where one was swimming
unconcernedly on the quiet water. When the smoke of my
gun had cleared up, I found the body of the pretty creature
floating on the surface. ‘This was my only offense. These
Grebes breed sparingly in Albany County. The nest is built
among the reeds. The eggs are from four to eight and are

dull white.

HoRNED GREBE 163
HoRNED GREBE.—Colymbus auritus. 13.50
Rare Migrant
Field marks.—Feathers of head black and light brown, and
stand out like a monk’s cowl, giving the bird a bizarre

appearance; upper parts reddish-brown to blackish; white
patch on wing.

If one can get close enough to this Grebe to observe its
strange head, identification will be easy, for there is no other

bird at all like it.

HOoLBELL’s GREBE.—Colymbus holbellii. 19.00

A very much larger species, recorded here but once.

Birds of Washington Park

The appended list of the birds of Washington Park,
Albany, is the result of the observations of three conservative
bird students whose notes cover a period of about eight years.
A large number of these birds, which are summer residents of
this County, remain in the Park throughout the Summer, and
build their nests in the trees or shrubbery; a number are seen
occasionally in Winter, and the rest pause for a few days
during the Spring or Fall migration. The list includes
seventy-four species, but it is not intended to convey the idea
that this number is complete, as any of the birds which pass

this way are liable to pay a visit to our beautiful breathing

spot. The list is as follows:

Bluebird

American Robin
Hermit Thrush
Olive-backed Thrush
Wilson’s Thrush

Wood Thrush
Ruby-crowned Kinglet
Golden-crowned Kinglet
Chickadee

Red-breasted Nuthatch
White-breasted Nuthatch

Brown Creeper

Brown Thrasher
Catbird

Mockingbird

American Redstart
Canadian Warbler
Wilson’s Warbler
Yellow-breasted Chat
Northern Yellow-throat
Oven-bird

Pine Warbler
Black-throated Green Warbler
Blackburnian Warbler

164

AMERICAN GoLpENn-Eyr

PLATE. X XI

Birps OF WASHINGTON Park

Black-poll Warbler
Bay-breasted Warbler
Chestnut-sided Warbler
Magnolia Warbler
Myrtle Warbler
Black-throated Blue Warbler
Yellow Warbler
Northern Parula Warbler
Nashville Warbler

Black and White Warbler
White-eyed Vireo
Yellow-throated Vireo
Warbling Vireo
Red-eyed Vireo

Cedar Waxwing

Scarlet Tanager
Indigo-bird

Rose-breasted Grosbeak
Towhee

Fox Sparrow

Song Sparrow
Slate-colored Junco
Chipping Sparrow
White-throated Sparrow
White-crowned Sparrow

165

Vesper Sparrow
American Goldfinch
American Crossbill
English Sparrow
Purple Finch

Purple Grackle
Rusty Blackbird
Baltimore Oriole
Orchard Oriole
Red-winged Blackbird
Cowbird

American Crow
Least Flycatcher
Wood Pewee

Phoebe

Kingbird
Ruby-throated Hummingbird
Chimney Swift
Northern Flicker
Yellow-bellied Sapsucker
Downy Woodpecker
Hairy Woodpecker
Belted Kingfisher
Yellow-billed Cuckoo
Screech Owl

166 THE Birps oF ALBANY COUNTY
HYPOTHETICAL LIST

SHORT-BILLED MARSH WREN.—Cistothorus stellaris.

AMERICAN PIPIT; TITLARK.—Anthus pensilvanicus.

(Undoubtedly present, though no records are available.)
CONNECTICUT WARBLER.—Geothlypis agilis.
PRAIRIE WARBLER.—Dendroica discolor.
HENSLOoW’s SPARROW.—Ammodramus _henslowii.
NoRTHERN RAVEN.—Corvus corax principalis.
HorNeED LARK.—Otocoris alpestris.

AMERICAN THREE-TOED WOODPECKER.—FPicoides
americanus

Arctic THREE-TOED WooDPECKER.—Ficoides arcticus.

AMERICAN Hawk OwL.—Surnia ulula caparoch.

GoLDEN EAGLE.—Aquila chrysaetos.
(Last record in this vicinity, Schenectady County, 1851.)

PipING PLoverR.—/¢gialitis meloda.
AMERICAN WIDGEON.—Mareca americana.

RED-LEGGED BLacK Duck.—Anas obscura rubripes.

SYSTEMATIC TABLE

‘The system of nomenclature adopted in recent years by the
American Ornithologists’ Union is directly the reverse of that
which has been used throughout this book. This reverse
order has been pursued for the reason that the old system
brings the more familiar and attractive birds at once before
the reader and places the lower and less familiar forms ‘at
the end. From the systemist’s point of view the A. O. U.’s
Check-list is the better, as it is founded on the theory of
evolution in which the lower orders come first, and are
arranged in an ascending scale until the most highly special-
ized forms are reached. For the convenience of the student,
the Orders, Suborders, Families, and Subfamilies of the birds
of Albany County are appended, according to the A. O. U.

nomenclature:

PAGE
I. ORDER PYGOPODES: Diving Birds... 161
SUBORDER POoDICIPEDES: Grebes...... 162
Family Podicipidee: Grebes.......... 162
SUBORDER CEPPHI: Loons and Auks.... 161
Family Gaviide: Loons.........5... 161
Family Allcide: Auks, Murres, and
bp PRE UTED NASER ER VA RI 161
Subfamily Phalerine: Auklets, Murre-
lets, and Guillemots........... 16!

Subfamily Alcine: Auks and Murres. 161
II. ORDER LONGIPENNES: Long-winged

Swimmers: 92204 Weed ergata dg 159
Family Laridze: Gulls and Terns...... 159
Subfamily Larinze: Gulls......... 159
Subfamily Sternine: Terns........ 159

167

168 Birps OF ALBANY COUNTY

V. ORDER ANSERES: Lamellirostral Swim-
meer PEAS FR RN

Family Anatide: Ducks, Geese, and

Samanseelds taht tse. Sect oe

Subfamily Merginze: Mergansers... .

Subfamily Anatine: River Ducks. . .

Subfamily Fuliguline: Sea Ducks. . .

Subfamily Anserinee: Geese........

VII. ORDER HERODIONES: Herons, Storks,
MBIBES, VERGE Tepe ole Wiatau ae tle te icin teeth elioke
SUBORDER HERopII: Herons, Egrets, Bit-

TERS HUGE YD. Uae etel cmc al jen LadiadeMal ct ¢

Family Ardeidz: Herons, Bitterns, etc. .
Subfamily Botaurine: Bitterns.....

Subfamily Ardeine: Herons and

Bigretsas 0 Ue saul a Mare esha e

VIII. ORDER PALUDICOL£E: Cranes, Rails,
(LCOS) AM ER TA A CUR G (ral Biegler? SS igen ete
SUBORDER RALLI: Rails, Gallinules,

Caatesy webes sii iceey chet Jig della ee

Family Rallidz: Rails, Gallinules, and

CeO ES ta ene ek cilgen ae

Subfamily Ralline: Rails.........

Subfamily Fulicine: Coots........

IX. ORDER LIMICOL/:: Shore Birds......
Family Scolopacidz: Snipes, Sandpipers,

CU pcre Hels) Avila cabtetey ab ome Mote oyllel etal (6

Family Charadriide: Plovers.........

X. ORDER GALLIN/E: Gallinaceous Birds. .

SUBORDER PHASIANI: Pheasants, Grouse,
Ouarlel! tetether yews CesT
Family Tetraonide: Grouse, Partridges,
SUCEROIB RS: Us Auaintcs Cuero Hibtoed dc oely bEChetouon c
Subfamily Perdicine: Partridges... .
Subfamily Tetraonine: Grouse.....

SYSTEMATIC TABLE

XI. ORDER COLUMB:: Pigeons and Doves.
Family Columbide: Pigeons and Doves.

XII. ORDER RAPTORES: Birds of ews. |).
SUBORDER FALCONEs: Vultures, Falcons,

Bexphecs ees itll: wheelie)

169

PAGE
135
135

123
12d

Family Falconide: Falcons, Hawks, ~

Baenes, | epeh rica Ao a aye Rie)
Subfamily — Accipitrine: Hawks,
Biggciee ere i Nana 72k
Subfamily Pandionine: Ospreys... .
SUBORDER STRIGES: Owls...........

Family Bubonide: Horned Owls, Hoot
Be LUN ole kl aM Ried abel LAT: Gish Le

XIV. ORDER COCCYGES: Cuckoos, King-

Rsbetsnieley Lente Un re iy hk

Family Cuculide: Cuckoos, Anis, etc. .
Subfamily Coccyzine: American
eck). TA UU bb he
SUBORDER ALCcYONEs: Kingfishers... ..
Family Alcedinide: Kingfishers.......

XV. ORDER PICI: Woodpeckers, Sapsuckers,

1 a a MERE bac EES i ah 1 el

XVI. ORDER MACROCHIRES: Goatsuckers,
Hummingbirds, Swifts, etc..........
SUBORDER CAPRIMULGI: Goatsuckers, etc.

Family Caprimulgide: Nighthawks,
Whip-poor-wills, ete ............

Subfamily Cheturine: Spine-tailed
A) ECAR IC A Pi ct
SUBORDER TROCHILI: Hummingbirds. . . .
Family Trochilide: Hummingbirds... .

127

128
127
123
126

123

120
122
122

122
120
120

116
116

112
114

114
113
113

113
112
112

Birps oF ALBANY COUNTY

XVII. ORDER PASSERES: Perching Birds... .
SUBORDER CLAMATORES: Songless Perch-

rics |) GARE ct MR ARE.) Son] aie ie Rae LM Di
Family Tyrannide: Flycatchers.......

SUBORDER OSCINES: Song Birds.......

Family Alaudidz: Larks...).......)...
Family Corvidee: Crows, Magpies, Jays,
ral CON Ar ate ten run TEN Gig (oils tava o
Subfamily Garrulinz: Magpies and

VARS eee RNe COeh Le CHeRe atl a Ve eae

Subfamily Corvine: Crows........
Family Icteridze: Blackbirds, Orioles, etc
Family Fringillide: Finches, Sparrows,

GES oie eilevisltalteleislcpeneuiiie talk siete ts nei teipishielts
Family Tanagride: Tanagers........
Family Hirundinide: Swallows.......
Family Ampelide: Waxwings........

Subfamily Ampelinze: Waxwings....
Family Laniide: Shrikes............
Family Vireonide: Vireos...........
Family Mnhiotiltide: Wood Warblers. .
Family Troglodytide: Thrashers, Wrens,

CLG ailemei lone iette ia tars. tel aeioniatiatie ie tinlatial ete

Subfamily Mimine: Thrashers... ..

Subfamily Troglodytine: Wrens... .
Family Certhiidee: Creepers..........
Family Paride: Nuthatches and Tit-

TICE CI, uM ae UU RST

Subfamily Sittine: Nuthatches......

Subfamily Parinee: Titmice........
Family Sylviidee: Warblers, Kinglets, and

Conateatehers. iis i Lk, La

Subfamily Regulinze: Kinglets......

Family Turdide: Thrushes, Bluebirds,

SEH Ie aap hatte Wal al SrcheeeDeU Ten ey lat lente: Po meen ints

INDEX

Acanthis'linaria). |) \) 7)":
linaria rostrata......
Accipiter atricapillus.....
COGpern INIT 5)!

Acknowledgments.......
Actitis macularia........
Actodromas minutilla....
Egialitis meloda........

semipalmata........
Agelaius phoeniceus.....
Pie SPOUSAL Secs ole
Te C0 Le ae I LO A

Mmmpelidas shins 3. ine oy

Sarmaliiee el sok ce
Tas USC ESA Be

obscura rubripes.157,

CMESEEER Sie Ge tan
Anthus pensilvanicus....
Antrostomus vociferus. . .
Aquila chrysaétos.......
Archibuteo lagopus sancti

-JORAHRIS 1.5).
Ardea herodias..........
renee ge at

157
166

Astragalinus tristis......
Aythya affinis...........
americana: (yok yy

Bartramia longicauda... .
Bittern, American.......

Blackaird crow yi.) bj) )):
Red-winged.........
PeUSEU Ei ei A

Blackhead, Little........

Blue-bill, Little..........

Blgemind ye wet

Bainabiakes ay ee

Botaurus lentiginosus....
Branta canadensis.......
Bubo virginianus........
Bubomida ye. ey

Ties Ld

platypterus.........
Butorides virescens. .....

Calcarius lapponicus.....
Canary, "Wald oo.)
Caprinuulgidze.). 2)... .),
Carpodacus purpureus...
Cateiga et Moran vith t

171

172 INDEX
PacE PAGE
Cedar tind 623) 5 5) aloe ths NOB MOO Wat) )o feels 77
Cepphus grylle...... s450%). 161 Creeper, Black and White 63
Certhia familiaris ameri- IBTO WIA. Shree eee 38
MLS fie LR A 38 Crossbill, American...... go
Certhtidae. sie: sie beet 38 Red.............-.. 90
Ceryle aleyon.) eigen 120 White-winged....... go
Chetura pelagica........ 113. Crow, American......... 99
Charadriide. ». 001k .4 14! Fish............... 102
Charadrius dominicus.... 142 Cuckoo, Black-billed..... 122
Charitonetta albeola..... 155 Yellow-billed........ 122
Chat, Yellow-breasted.... 47 Caculidze Rar ea 122
Chatderes (Annan) Wp 70 Cyanocitta cristata....... 102
Chebee.|).2.0).) eee 105,107 Cyanospiza cyanea....... 76
Chew oF Saye oe 78 4
Chickadee. wy SU ARMS 33 Dabelicke ye kings eee away 162
Headeoniannne: 36 Dafila acuta. oe 157
He A Me AeA Ma as 83 Dendroica estiva bia tata dain 60
Chordeiles virginianus. .)/r14 blackburnic. -.. = 9+): 55
Circus hudsonius. .). 2). I sibs eiaicak 57
34
Cistothorus stellaris ...39,166 sinsluivasaiannl aerator 59
; castanea..... 56
Clangula clangula ameri-
ceed LURE Ra 15s coronata Sop dauEsionT Oc 59
; i MISCOIOT 8). seo icuau pme 166
ISTATIMIC A celal te aia: 155
maculosa! seers supe 58
Coccyges..... seetteeees 120 palmarum hypochry-
Coccyzus americanus..... 122 EU ena bev (4 54
erythrophthalmus... 122 pensylvanica. ...... 56
Colaptes aurates luteus... 116 EE aR LRN Ty 56
Colinus virginianus...... 139 rect Sana ey 60
Columb re 2.5) 0 ee 135 MP ORSI hie. eae
Columbidee). . 5.). + jain 135 VATEDS.) 1.00 6 busters Smee STS
Colymbus auritus........ 163 Dolichonyx oryzivorus... 98
ooed rs 2 sel 163 Dove, Mourning......... 135
Compsothlypis americana Dowitcher. ys jtiacch see 145
usnez............ 61 Dryobates pubescens me-
Contopus virens......... 107 @ianus... ..... so) c084 209
Coot, American’. :)..53)50). 4): 148 Willostuss scisu-eiLm riers 119
Core ide yey ny oa Og) Dwele vBlaele \.) 0 ech oe L57
Corvus americanus....... 99 Lesser Seaup. « 0.2.1): 156
essifragus:.. 2's). Me dante Red-legged Black. 157,166
corax principalis..... 166 WOO) oo. pig aiepauhe they 156

INDEX

PaGE

Eagle, American......... 130
relat, Sia chess Cain 130
MMe aL) ia'a si cig i A 166
Ectopistes migratorius... 135
Empidonax flaviventris.. 107
minimus, WPA i) Os
traillii alnorum...... 106
Ereunetes pusillus....... 145
Bephinatory.,. 22). 2.0% 15
Falco columbarius....... 129
peregrinus anatum.. 129
Sparverius Hoy ih 128
Jueitcoss se ae a 127
Pinel, Purple: i'. oc csi ¢ gt
Flicker, Northern........ 116
Flycatcher, Alder........ 106
Mreste ds)... OLENA ie de)
Great-crested..... 108,110
ROCANES firs S's 3 HER 105,106
Olive-sided......... 108
Yellow-bellied....... 107
Pringillide: . 0.2...) 120096
Fulica americana........ 148

Galeoscoptes carolinensis. 44

2 LL: 12S a 137
Gallinago delicata....... 145
Gawia) imber si /3.).)..20% 161
RAINE Sha ibs yu o.0's OM 161
Gawites s/he noi 161
Geothlypis agilis......... 166
philadelphia........ 50
trichas brachidactyla 49
Golden-eye, American.... 155
BATIOW? Bh icisa:5 sd LUE 155
Goldfinch, American..... 88
Ceperander. $1.54 eae 158
Geese; Canada. (04 $45..08 154
Wan fs SA. ede 154
Goshawk, American...... 133

173
PAGE
Grackle, Purple......... 92
Grebe, Holbeell’s........ 163
Hosmediiss, a polahas 163
Pied-billed.... 3:4. /i5%:. 162
Grosbeak, Pine.......... 92
Rose-breasted....... 77
Grouse, Ruffed.......... 137
Guillemot, Black........ 161
Gull, Bonaparte’s:.4saenr 160
FSOTE MNEs |. ishele hd ia, sek he 159
Halizetus leucocephalus. 130
Harelda hyemalis........ 154
Hawk, American Rough-
depaeds (titi a ks oo ae
American Sparrow... 128
Broad-winged....... 131
CHORES Sep vaio ee aos 133
BO a ea 129
gS Ie 127
PROAB UIA ploy CGS beet, 131
ui 526 ee ae On An 134
Piveors ts se 3 129
Red-shouldered ..... 131
Red-tailed.......... 133
Sharp-shinned....... 134
SpatrOw, 0.20. se 128
Helediver.s sake cele 4 162
Helminthophila chrysop-
LE ER CNB eae thm WO?
Peres rina. tre) 5k eee 61
rubricapilla, #.'3)..0% 1)2 “62
Heradiones,: .\3 2 is) 024 fi 150
Helodromas solitarius.... 144
Heron, Black-crowned
Nigithssss Jat 'aaatta 150
Great Blues 44.44% ISi
BTEORs idea eb 150
Little Greenivti2.)20'.'2 ISI
Hirundinidm,).. /\5 0.845 a! 70

Hirundo erythrogastra... 72

174 INDEX
PAGE PaGE
Hummingbird, Ruby- Teen). :).)i).5'.. SRR 161
throated: |.) cenit 112 Red-throated....... 161
Hydrochelidon nigra suri- Lophodytes cucullatus... 158
mamensis.d i) oe 159 Loxiacurvirostraminor.. go
Hylocichla alicie........ ait leucopteray.)!./)i//ie wn go
aliciz bicknelli...... 31
fuscescens.) Wee ene 29 Macrochires.. Apres a
guttata pallasii..... sa) MAlroiiabapide pie) . 145
mustelina,.\...).( 284% 30): Mallaralji) 000" tee 158
ustulata swainsonii.. 31 Marecaamericana....... 166
Hypothetical List. . 166 Martin, seni LOOT 74
Meadowlark. . 96
Teteria wirems'sy2\2\.i/e 2 ys 47 Megascops asio. 124
Teterige yi 22. ees 8 g2 Melanerpes exythroeephes
Icterus galbula.......... 94 Leas) ee Ae 17
spurius............. 95 Melospiza cinerea melodia 80
Illustrations, List of..... 13 georgiana........... 79
Indigo-bird............. 76 lineolnii.. 4. iw 80
Introductions 4H ee eaeier 17 Merganser, American.... 158
Iridoprocne bicolor...... 72 Hooded.) eusin wae 158
Merganser americanus... 158
Jay, Blue............ too,t02 Merula migratoria. (/.))\1/!!! 25
Junco, Slate-colored...... Bai) eae Hodades hu) Jae 113
Junco hyemalis. .. 82 Mimus polyglottos....... 45
Reaiilideer ee we endo d ait 141 Mniotilta varia... . +... 63
NG ea ed osteo NA 108,111 Mniotiltide By RAT Nate 46
Kingfisher, Belted....... 120 Mockingbird... 3 45
Kinglet, Golden-crowned. 33 Molothrus ater... {s\.S0" 77
Ruby-crowned.. . . ..32,33 Mird-hene A.) 02h eae 148
} Murre, Brinnich’s.. rx
Panndses .\. 5 4) Ue 67 Myiarchus crinitus....... 110
Lanius borealis.......... 67 !
ludovicianus........ 67 Nettion carolinensis...... 157
Baridze 22 Neva Me E59 'Nighthawks....70e 8 114,115
Bark Weorned whic ae 166 Nuthatch, Red-breasted. 37
Prairie Horned.... 104 White-breasted.... .36,37
Larus argentatus........ 159 Nuttallornis borealis..... 108
philadelphia........ 160 Nyctala acadica......... 124
Bimicole LL eeens rat | Nyctea nyctea... wie ve 123
Longipennes.\.':....2.) 075% 159 Nycticorax nycticorax
Longspur, Lapland...... 87 neevius,) el 150

INDEX 175
PacE PAGE
Oidemia degianda. 3). drga | PRBS Wiehe sis dele 107,108
Olbiorchilus hiemalis..... 39 Bridge:).).|2\2 ners: 109
serra bilo i Hu eas eae POR oni did RAW ald die 116
Oriole, Balimiores si: 394395, |. Picidee. ).5 0) .\dauceanoaeei. 116
Orchards, 4.253433 ea 95 Picoides americanus..... 166
Osprey, American....... 127 ATCHICUS | wiethihdduiuels 166
Otocoris alpestris........ 166 Pigeon, Passenger....... 135
alpestris praticola... 104 So A LG ac RA 161
Oven-bird. 60s. Le 50 Waildesus Li iwokadieth 135
Owl, Acadian.-.:)465. 44 124 Pinicola enucleator leu-
American Barn...... 126 CURA bua suits 92
pmerrean Tlawie) +00!) GGG | Pintaid. so 4 \5.0)25 dis //ai des 157
American Long-eared 125 Pipilo erythrophthalmus. 78
Based s | a sbi leas res. , Papit; Americgs.,\.).:.//1)) 166
Great Horned....... 123 Pirangaerythromelas.... 74
BA OOE ois .c ysis eystarnt < ate 125 TAA Bas 3)5 /5) (6) sO le 75
Monkey-faced....... 126 Plover, American Golden. 142
Saw-whet.. 040.654 124 Pipi iad eye Sees ai 166
Screechasinn oidvisnes 124 Semipalmated....... I4I
Short-eared......... 125 Uppland 2 ye 143
SSEROO RINT pac again Wueiadets peg |) Podieipedesiii. 246 Uva 162
Oxyechus vociferus...... 141 Podilymbus podiceps..... 162
Pocecetes gramineus..... 86
Paludicoles. as as n48 \Porzana carolina.) .)).. 148
Pandion haliaétus caro- Progme Staite oldie aks 74
iniensise 93s lve : neg: Bypepodes.! cK eis 161
Pari cia 3) aks A Senala nok 33 ,
Partridge! 5.) ). yada sieaad 137 eat, UT Me ha *39
Mae Querquedula discors..... 157
Parus atricapillus........ 33 Ouiecstun quscts
hudsonicus.......... CHR Ran RTT VARTA he B
Passer domesticus....... gr Rail Carolinas j))j04 kit 148
Passerculus sandwichensis Witeimias is bia 149
SAVANNA G i Sirs es ss RN Tho 2 a Oe oe 148
Passerella iliaca......... 79 «36. Rallus virginianus....... 149
PRESCHERS oy hd dala 3524p aq |) Raptoresy.)s))5.4 sha odie. 123
Passerina nivalis......... 87 Raven, Northern)! ./hi)05% 166
Peabody-bird........... 85 Red-bird, Summer....... 75
Petrochelidon lunifrons.. 73 Redhead............... 156
Pewee, Wood........... ney (Redpoll iy sie. silo ak eas 89
Pe AmaNE | )5) aha se agit 137 Greater: 6 s)s)-s site go
Philohela minor......... 146 MELO Waka) a Ldn 54

176
PAGE
Redstart, American...... 46
Reedbird ssw eae 2s) 98
Regulus calendula....... 32
SATA Ae deere tebe ete lol he 33
Ring-neck Heme Mea Soe ee 141
Ripariatipariat ue) io. 7E
Robin, American........ 25
Sandpiper, Bartramian .. 143
Beast cee eee 145
Semipalmated....... 145
Solttaryyipsgek wks 144
Sports is yond eye bys). 142
Sapsucker, Yellow-bellied 118
Sayornis phoebe......... 108
Scolecophagus carolinus.. 93
scolopacidze jes ewes. 2k): 142
Scoter, White-winged.... 154
Seiurus aurocapillus...... 50
anotacitla, owt a's. 53
noveboracensis...... 54
Setophaga ruticilla....... 46
heldrakenys ire Sele 158
RRAUTNT 2 UNAS S | Hen ae Sahar 89
Shrike, Loggerhead...... 67
Northern. iyo eerie: 67
ialia Sialis. ch ckpdl silent 23
Siskin: Pine sae Aen Noe Os
Sitta canadensis......... a9
Garolinensiss4)()3;):). .'. 36
Snipe Wilson’s.......... 145
Snowbird. |... eae 82
Snowflake 56) Aiea 87
0 2 Og A A Se OE 148
Sparrow, Chipping...... 83,85
English yyy ter 2 ke gI
Bieldig ts {jtiano 83
Fox. . 79
Henslow’s. (chinese a 166

Lincolnis. cians 80

INDEX

PAGE
Sparrow—Cont.

Sa VAs are jx so nyse a)
Song... 80,86
S Wasp ee vesicle. 79
ROG Novi Ns fetal 84
Vesper isici carats multe 86
White-crowned... ..29,85
White-throated..... 85
Sphyrapicus varius...... 118
PINUS PINUS, /.)..on)s Rare 88
Spizella monticola....... 84
OLE KSpU LE Ty Aen ery 83
Soetalig 5 id's iivayaeyy as

Stelgidopteryx serripen-
aT ES By Ka oY Bey 70
“yr giles (men OR ae MOT MIO ATO Re 126
Strix pratincola.). .).\.. 44 126
Sturnella magna......... 96
Surnia ululacaparoch.... 166
Swallow, Baniles.j.4.0.0ne 71
1342) 91 REP RM Te GN a oir G23
CLABES a yal fue fare la
fDi screen BORE ts dV) 157°C;
Rough-winged...... 7O
et NA EY ICE RP 72
White-bellied....... 72
Switt, Chimney so)... siely 113
Sg hipblel: Mena MAES TEN, 1 - 32
Syrnium varium......... 125
systematic Tables iy ji! ./2)- 167

Tanager, Scarlet .. ..74, 76,77

Sumatera Veg
Managridze Skillen ae
Teal, Blue-winged....... 157

Green-winged....... 157
Telmatodytes palustris... 38
Tern, Black) wey awn c age.
‘Tetraonidze: bh) ) QUEM a) 137
Thrasher, Brown........ 43

INDEX

Pace

Thrush, Bicknell’s....... 3r
Bre ee ee 43
Golden-crowned..... 50
Gray-cheeked....... Br

te | ae eg.
Olive-backed........ 31
Swainson sol.) S. 3r
WINDER SS ese. Shs 29
Woe cr Ro 30
Titlark, American....... 166
Totanus flavipes......... 144
melanoleucus........ 144
Moweeea tna eis we ek | 78
Toxostoma rufum....... 43
plies 610] 201 5 2 eae a a
Trochilus colubris....... 112
Troglodytes aédon..... ,.39,41
Troplodytidz 0)! 38
Dumaibe wees c teens ay
Dyranmidee Ao IOS
Tyrannus tyrannus...... IEI
Dries loge ys oo ok ee 161
Mearys ae are nina. |. 29
Mireamadaes fbb, les we 63
Vireo, Blue-headed...... 64
Philadelphia........ 66
Red-eyed 4200225 66
Sanitary oii a) Nabe, 64
Warbling..........65,67
White-eyed......... 63
Yellow-throated..... 64
Vireo flavifrons.......... 64
Biiviisaira sk, 65
noveboracensis...... 63
olivaeeus. Wid 26% | 66
philadelphicus....... 66
solitarings: cic\bsok!. 64

177
Pace
Warbler, Bay-breasted... 56
Black and White.... 63
Blackburnian....... 55
Black-capiyiy hii’... 47
Blact-poll, Aga) 56
Black-throated Blue. 59
Black-throated Green 55
Canadian) 000) ay
Cape Maye.) auiitliyss 60
Genuleas Waa!) Seg
Chestnut-sided...... 56
Connecticut...... 166
Golden-winged...... 62
Magnolias . 0ic/2 ic! 58
Mournisigsit). iy.) 50°
Miyride. usin 59
Nashville........... 62
Northern Parula....58, 61
BPURIE SLU Ad ides Wht § CM 54
Prairie! Sub wet: 7, 166
Tenmmessen\s)/iit. }). Or
Wikaarsirh wud) ag
Mellow...) 0sulelin va 60
Yellow Palm........ 54
Yellow-rumped...... 59
Washington Park,Birds of 164
Water-thrush: oy l2s ads) 54
Louisiana ss. hide! 53
Waxwing, Bohemian... . 69
Codarecetalivgey..)') 68
Whip-poor-will.......... 115
Whistler. . 0... ahtewe xe
Witgeon.|...)5. 5 soaker: 166
Wilsonia canadensis..... . 47
potas ft} Soeeir eins 47
Woodcock, American..145,146
Woodpecker, American
Three-toed........ 166
Arctic Three-toed... 166
Downy) disk A) VS

178
PaGE
Woodpecker—C ont.
Golden-winged...... 116
BEAM, s sfc) hich a /sla\2 11g
Red-headed) ..)..:)...).\. 117
Wren, House. eis goy at

Long-billed Marsh... 38
Short-billed Marsh. 39, 166
WEREOE ho sic alee ne 39

Yellowbird, Summer..... 60
Yellow-hammer.........

INDEX

PAGE

Vellow-legs tei siiuis Usa se 144
Greater asses ete 144
SUMMED Ae aay 144
Wianter subs asiul aici 144

Yellow-throat, Northern. 49

Zamelodia ludoviciana... 77

Zenaidura macroura..... 135
Zonotrichia albicollis..... 85
leucophrys. 4664/0545 85

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