THE MIGRANT A Quarterly Journal devoted to BIRDS OF TENNESSEE xc Volumes 15, 16 and 17 1944 — 1945 — 1946 Published by the Tennessee Ornithological Society at Nashville, Tenn. •A QUARTERLY JQUR.N4L DEVOTEDvTO TEN N ESSEKbIRDS sM r ^fublisbed b)/ '^4 THETEMNESSEE ORNITHOLOGICAL k SOCIETY A sMM MgAcU BIRD BOOKS We hare in our store, or can obtain for you on short notice, these and many other books on Bird life Pocket Nature Guides These are the accepted pocket guides for use on field trips. Size 3%x5^ inches, profusely illustrated in colors. Each, in fabricoid, $1.50 Land Birds East of the Rockies. By Chester A. Reed. Water and Game Birds. By Chester A. Reed. Wild Flowers East of the Rockies. By Chester A. Reed. The Tree Guide. By Julia Ellen Rogers. HANDBOOK OF BIRDS OF EASTERN NORTH AMERICA. By F. M. Chap- man. Well illustrated in colors. 580 pages. The standard complete de- scriptive handbook of birds for the ornithologist $5.00 NATURAL HISTORY OF THE BIRDS OF EASTERN AND CENTRAL N. A. Revised and abridged from E. H- Forbush’s famous 3 vol. “Birds of Mass.” By J. B. May with the original 93 colored plates by Fuertes and Brooks. Widely used by T. O. S. members $3.75 AUDUBON’S BIRDS OF AMERICA. A very handsome volume containing large reproductions of Audubon’s famous 500 plates, lithographed in full colors with descriptions of each $4.95 AUDUBON. By Constance Rourke. A new biography with 12 Audubon plates reproduced in colors. 342 pages $1.69 A FIELD GUIDE TO THE BIRDS. By Roger Tory Peterson, Revised edition. The complete identification handbook for beginner and veteran alike. Co- piously illustrated in wash and color $2.75 THE AUDUBON GUIDE TO ATTRACTING BIRDS. Gives successful methods of increasing the birdlife about our grounds. Illust $1.49 WILD BIRDS AT HOME. By F. A. Herrick. 350 pages. 137 illustrations. Complete treatise on everyday habits of our birds $4.00 ENCYCLOPEDIA OF AMERICAN BIRDS. Gives description of all known North American Birds. 700 illust $1.98 TRAVELING WITH THE BIRDS. By Rudyerd Boulton. A book on bird migration. Beautiful color plates by W. A. Weber $1.25 AMERICAN LAND BIRDS. By Alice R. Ball. Histories of 156 species, illus- trated with 47 color plates by Horsfall. 291 pages $1.69 THE BIRD BOOK. By Neltje Blanchan. All about those birds that are most worth knowing. Illustrated $1.98 NATURE’S SECRETS. Edited by G. Clyde Fisher. A popular American natural history including the birds, 840 pages, fully illustrated $1.89 BIRDS OF TENNESSEE. By A. F. Ganier. 64 pp. A distributional list showing how, when and where all species are to be found $0.50 All bird lovers are cordially invited to visit our store, or write to us for information on books about birds, nature, gardening and ot-of-doors. METHODIST PUBLISHING HOUSE 810 Broadway Nashville 2, Tenn. Tel. 6-2641 mimmiimiimHitimitiiiiimiiiiniiiiiiiuiiiimiiiioimiiiimiiiiiiiitiiiiumiiiiiitiHiiiimiiimminiiiiHiHHimiitiMiiiiMimiiiimiifiiMHiiiiiniiiuiiiiiiiuiniimii Patronize our advertisers and mention THE MIGRANT THE MIGRANT VOL. XV. MARCH, 1944 No. 1 Published by the Tennessee Ornithological Society, to Record and Encourage the Study of Birds in Tennessee. Issued in March, June, September and December BIRDS AND THE WEST TENNESSEE RIVER LAKE By Clarence Cottam The Gilbertsville or Kentucky Reservoir,1 soon to be formed, will create a tremendous inland lake extending north and south across practically all of western Tennessee and Kentucky for a distance of more than 180 miles. This “Great Lake of the South” will vary in width from 1 to 3 miles; and because of its very irregular margins and numerous indentations, it will have a shore line of approximately 2,000 miles — nearly 2% times the air-line distance from Chicago to New Orleans, or somewhat less than the distance from Nashville, Tennessee, to Seattle, Washington! Though there will be plenty of deep water, the lake will contain an enor- mous acreage of shallows, which will certainly be conducive to the growth of emergent vegetation. Submerged equatic growth (an important source of food for waterfowl and fish) will be produced only if water fluctuation is held within reasonable limits, especially during the critical growing season. Coppice or sprout and willow growth from the extensive timber cuttings will surely appear in shallow water unless continuous effort is made to control it. Numerous shallow bays and fingerlike projections extend into the adjacent upland, some of which is well timbered or contains much shrubby growth, while other tracts represent good agricultural land. The best agricultural land in the Tennessee Valley will be inundated or will border upon the impound- ment. A number of extensive agricultural areas will be dewatered. These areas will include some 6,000 acres near the mouth of the Duck River, slightly smaller units near Camden along U. S. Highway 70, and tracts near the mouth of Big Sandy River. These units will be diked off, and large pumps will keep them dry so that the land can be farmed during the summer yet be flooded shallowly during the late fall and winter. As a consequence of this treatment and of the diversified nature of the entire area, many types of environments attractive to bird life will inevitably be produced. Unquestionably, this in turn will result in a marked increase in bird populations and particularly in a much greater variety of species than now regularly visit the area. Water birds, which now are relatively little known in Tennessee, should become common at least during migration. Grebes, cormorants, herons, egrets, bitterns, rails, coots, gulls, terns, plovers, sandpipers, and other shore birds 1As most of this reservoir will be in Tennessee, it might be more appropri- ately called the Tennessee Reservoir, but apparently this name has not been suggested. Note: For maps to illustrate this article, see pages 11 and 12. — Ed. 22 ’44 2 The Migrant March will certainly increase in abundance. Management of lands adjacent to the impoundment, along with more effective protection, will also result in an increase in many species of upland birds. If the area or sizeable units of it are properly managed to encourage wildlife, we may perhaps effect the most startling and favorable increase in bird population, particularly of waterfowl, including both ducks and geese. For evidence of this, we may refer to the record on Wheeler Reservoir of Tennessee River in northern Alabama. The record here is the more significant and encouraging when we remember that the area is well off the normal migratory flight lanes of ducks and geese. Through cooperative agreement in 1938 by the Tennessee Valley Authority, the State of Alabama, and the Fish and Wildlife Service, a Federal refuge or sanctuary was established on but 40,000 acres of this reservoir and adjacent T.V.A. holdings. In this same area the T.V.A. was obligated to carry on necessary mosquito control and to manage the river for the promotion of navigation and flood control and the production of the needed electric power; also, normal agricultural practices were followed on the larger blocks of agricultural land within this refuge. The area was used as a proving ground to harmonize these varied and often conflicting interests, and the results have been startling. Cooperative studies have shown not only that the interests of wildlife conservationists and mosquito-control workers are compatible, but also that these two groups have many problems in common. Water levels can be regulated for the benefit of both interests, and burning practices and larvicidal control can be so regu- lated as to serve one purpose without noticeably injuring the other. It is pos- sible to grow certain marsh and aquatic plant species that will furnish essential food and shelter for waterfowl and other wildlife and, at the same time, serve the mosquito-control interests by keeping out vegetation that would encourage mosquito production. Agricultural practices on these wildlife lands can readily be adjusted to serve wildlife and benefit the local farm people. This is accom- plished by “share-cropping,” that is, the farmer grows corn, beans, peas, or various grain crops and then, instead of paying the Government rent for the use of the land, he leaves the equivalent — say a third or fourth of the crop — in the field as food for the birds. Very few birds frequented this area before the refuge was established. Now, five years after the establishment of the refuge, 1,000 to 7,000 Canada geese and 10,000 to 20,000 ducks find attractive wintering habitat on the area, and many more birds find attractive food and shelter during protracted periods of migration. The development and man- agement of the refuge have resulted in a marked increase in quail populations and in the supply of native furbearers, which add considerably to the local interest and economy. Under Federal law, 25 percent of all income derived from the sale of surplus products, such as furs, grazing or crops, is returned to the counties in which the areas are located. Unfortunately, on most adja- cent T.V.A. holdings where wildlife development had not been practiced by the Fish and Wildlife Service, there was relatively little utilization of the area by wildlife. Similar development could readily be made throughout most of the exten- sive T.V.A. holdings. Gilbertsville Reservoir is ideally suited to such develop- ment. The area would be a boon not only to the people of the States of Ten- nessee and Kentucky but to the Nation as a whole. The reservoir is directly 1944 The Migrant 3 within the Mississippi flyway (see map) ; furthermore, this fly way has very few wintering and resting areas where food and protection can be afforded the birds between the northern breeding grounds and the Gulf coast marshes. Surely it would be in the best public interest if the States of Tennessee and Kentucky and the two Federal agencies, the Fish and Wildlife Service and the Tennessee Valley Authority, would promptly form cooperative agree- ments to develop and manage appropriately suitable tracts of this land that is now under Federal ownership. Such development and utilization of the area need not interfere to any noticeable extent with power development, naviga- tion, and flood control — the primary purposes of the reservoir. Immediate action is necessary to conserve and utilize this important na- tional resource, to prevent deterioration of the habitat through growth of obnoxious vegetation, and to keep development costs at a minimum. If such action is taken, this section of the country will undoubtedly become one of the Nation’s most important recreational areas. Plans for development of the area are already formulated (see map) by the respective States and the Fish and Wildlife Service. U. S. Fish and Wildlife Service, Chicago 54, III. o LOWERY: PROBABLE MIGRATION ROUTES OF CHIMNEY SWIFTS A Review, by Ben B. Coffey, Jr. The author made good use of the opportunity to band large numbers of Chimney Swifts at Baton Rouge, La., a strategic location for such studies. Analysis of banding results indicate that this species migrates chiefly across the Gulf of Mexico rather than along the coast in either direction, and con- siderable field work is reported1 to support this hypothesis. A total of 21,414 Swifts were trapped and banded, — 115 in April, 1939, the remainder during the autumns of 1937, 1938, and 1939, constituting nine flocks, varying in size from 500 (number banded) to 4,699. As elsewhere in the South the Swift population is large and there is apparently a rapid turn- over. For example on Sept. 24 and Sept. 27, 1938, 5,699 Swifts were banded, yet only 218 (3.8 per cent) of these were “repeats” on Oct. 1, 1938. A week later, with 9,499 banded birds of the season as possibilities, only 46 (.5 per cent) were taken. There are 5 “recoveries” of the season which support evidence presented by other banders of random movements. These range from a bird recovered the same day at Clinton, La. (30 mi. NNE) to one retrapped at Clarksville, Tenn. (475 mi. NNE) five days later. The total number of “returns” were 340, from the 16,000 individuals banded one and two years previously. Three of these were “Returns-2”: viz, two originally banded Oct. 1, 1937, retaken Sept. 27, 1938, and Oct. 7, 1939; one banded Oct. 12, 1937, retaken Sept. 24, 1938, and April 2, 1939. To the returns can be added two originally banded at Nashville in August, 1938, retrapped at Baton Rouge the same season and retaken there Oct. 14, 1939. iLowery, George H., Jr. 1943. The Dispersal of 21,414 Chimney Swifts Banded at Baton Rouge, Louisiana, with Notes on Probable Migration Routes. Proceedings of the Louisiana Academy of Sciences , Vol. VII, pp. 56-74. 4 The Migrant March Apparently the latest reports of recoveries available to the author were for 1941, four years after the original banding and two years after the final band- ing. Of his 21,414 birds, 126 were recovered at distances varying from 15 to 1,900 miles; 93 were chance single recoveries, while 33 were retrapped by 13 other banders. “Foreign returns,” that is, birds banded by another station operator and retrapped at Baton Rouge, numbered 62 (with local returns on 2). These were from 14 other Swift banding stations which are shown on figure 2 reproduced here. (Blind River, Ont., should also have been shown as a point of banding.) Individuals of interest: 39-34177 banded, Lexington, Mo., Sept. 23, 1938; retrapped at Baton Rouge, Sept. 27. Having entered the chimney Sept. 26, it covered an airline distance of 600 miles in 3 days. 38-152845 banded, Baton Rouge, Sept. 24, 1938; recaptured and released at Campbellton, N. B., June 11, 1939; recaptured Aug. 22, 1940, 15 miles south- west at Upsalquitch, New Brunswick. Altogether there was an interchange of banded Swifts with 20 other band- ing stations. Results can be summarized thus: Tennessee area, 49; Lexington, Mo., 2; Iowa-Ill., 5; Blind River, Ont., 3; Kingston, Ont., 10; Charlottesville, Va., 12; Atlanta-Opelika, 13; Hattiesburg, Miss., 1; Total, 95. From these data, as shown on the map, Lowery considers the Lower Mis- sissippi Valley as an area of convergence for most of our Chimney Swifts. This fits in with or is an extension of migration routes advanced by other Swift banders. All cooperators have in common a paucity of records below the Baton Rouge area so the author endeavors to throw light on possible routes by which the Chimney Swifts leave the country each fall and return each spring. Migration records for Texas and Florida were examined and a special watch was kept during field trips into those states. According to the evidence at hand the bulk of the birds are postulated to move across the Gulf of Mexico. The possibility is considered that in the spring some may use flank routes to reach central Florida and eastern Texas, respectively, but in the fall all birds, including Texas and Florida residents, apparently concen- trate in the lower Mississippi Valley. Lowery eliminates Florida as a major fly way in the spring and, moreover, suggests that Florida residents may form part of the fall concentrations on the central Gulf Coast. In the Spring Chimney Swifts arrive about March 19 in an area from Baton Rouge to Pensacola. A few March records in Florida might be accidentals from this movement. Most appear much later. Based on field data and records from Florida and from Hispaniola (Haiti), the author states that this species reaches central and northern Florida before it does southern Florida where it is rare, and surmises that these individuals use an Hispaniola-Bahaman fl’/way at that season. In the fall the species is apparently absent from the Antilles and rare in the Florida keys. From Bent (1940) he cites a Swift banded in August at Sanford, in central Florida, that was found with a broken wing the next month near Tallulah, in North- east Louisiana. Howell (1932) mentions “large flocks in the fall'"’ in Florida but makes no mention as to actual size; these are considered to be local gatherings. Their banding would certainly indicate whether they move to the northwest like the Sanford bird or simply move westward and there fall into the great trans-Gulf flyway. Conversely, of the large numbers of Swifts banded at Baton Rouge and Memphis, only one has been recovered in Florida: 1944 The Migrant 5 Baton Rouge, Louisiana. {By cowrtesy of La. Academy of Sciences.) Similar maps for Memphis, Chattanooga, Atlanta, Ga.-Opeleika, Ala., and for the Charlottesville, Va., areas, may be found respectively in THE MIGRANT for Dec. 1936, V. 7, p. 78; Dec. 1938, V. 9, p. 86; and, June, 1940, V. 10, p. 43 (taken from Bird Banding, V. 11, p. 37); Bird Banding, 1937, V. 8, p. 21; and Bird Banding, 1942, V. 13, p. 62. 6 The Migrant March 34-40620, banded Oct. 8, 1938, at Baton Rouge, found dead, May 2, 1939, at Umatilla, Fla.2 In Texas, flights of Swifts have been recorded at Brownsville, during March and April and again in September, and the species has also been noted in eastern Mexico. However, Lowery and Burleigh saw none between Oct. 21 and 28, 1937, in east Texas (including three days at Brownsville) although they were abundant at Baton Rouge, Oct. 21. Only two birds banded at Baton Rouge have been recorded in Texas, both in the spring of some later year (April 17 and May — ), indicating birds at or enroute to their nesting locali- ties.3 If nesting, their trapping at Baton Rouge in the fall substantiates the theory of a concentration there. Confirmation awaits data from Florida and Texas banded birds. However, the author has made a logical deduction and has supported it well with data. As he concludes, ‘‘A thorough understanding of the flyways traveled by Chim- ney Swifts in leaving and returning to the United States, is of considerable significance for therein may lie the solution to the enigma of the bird’s winter home.” Fort Sill, Oklahoma, March, 1944. 2The author might have pointed to the lack of Florida records by Green at Chattanooga ( Bird-Banding , 1940:37-57) and by Calhoun and Dickerson at Charlottesville ( Bird-Banding , 1942:57-69.) The last two banded 20851 Swifts at the Virginia location and reported that their birds apparently migrated to the east of the Appalachians, except that in the fall a portion evidently used a secondary route to the west of the mountains, some being retrapped at Mem- phis and at Nashville. Those retrapped at Baton Rouge might be of the latter group but the numerous recoveries of Baton Rouge birds in the East indicates that the bulk of the eastern residents converge in the Baton Rouge area re- gardless of whether they use a hypothetical route east or west of the moun- tains. 3That some Swifts are only passing through East Texas in the spring is evident from the following 14 recoveries in that area gleaned by the reviewer. Chattanooga (from 17,165 banded), 3 records; April 29, 30, May 1 (Green, 1940). Memphis (35,113), 6 records; April — , May 4, 5, 6, 9, 12. Clarks- ville, Tenn. (7,765), 1 on April 18 (Hutchison, in litt.). Nashville, 3 records; April 24, 25, May 4 (Laskey, in litt). Charlottesville (20,851), 1 on April 30 (Calhoun and Dickerson, 1942). The Memphis bird recovered May 9 was one of a flock of 50 trapped in a stove. The late spring migration in Florida and in Texas might be connected with the late migrants reported at Memphis (The Migrant, 1942, p. 68)— over 700 on May 14, 1942, of which 450 re- mained at least two days later. 1944 The Migrant 7 THE SWAMP NEAR CEDAR HILL By Alfred Clebsch When the bird-watcher leaves the city, he is delighted by the first habitat where he can always count on a group of birds. He may even know of some rare bird that is to be found in its shelter. But one day he finds the scene changed; the place has been cleared for some project, a street is laid out and houses are going up. With helpless regret he sees the city expand and must console himself that there are similar habitats' farther out. A feeling of irre- placeable loss, however, overtakes him when he learns that progress has seized some remote haunt, a deep woods, a marsh or a swamp that was the goal of his journeys. The cross-cut saw and the drainage ditch do quick work and soon a cultivated field replaces the wildlife habitat that had no more claim to be preserved than the fancy of some bird-lover and nature-student. Since such places are getting scarcer as the years pass, it seems fitting to record their existence and pay tribute to them while they can still be visited by our fellow bird-students. With this in mind I want to write of the swamp near Cedar Hill. On account of its topography and land development swamps are scarce in the northern part of Middle Tennessee. Their number is made up mainly by the few Cumberland River sloughs that have not yet been drained. In contrast to them there is in the northwestern part of Robertson County on the drainage divide between Red River and Sulphur Fork an upland swamp that can well demand the attention of the bird-watcher in search of unusual habitats. It lies about a mile southeast of Cedar Hill, a small town on highway 41E and on the Nashville-Hopkinsville line of the Louisville & Nashville Railroad. There are about thirty acres of fine woods, bisected by the railroad track. During spring and early summer the northern section is well inundated, but in the drier seasons the water recedes to a buttonbush area only a few acres in extent. Still, the abundance of mosses and lichens on the tree trunks as well as the sponginess of the ground underfoot attest the moisture of the site. The place began to fascinate me 30 years ago when I used to see it from the train, but only in recent years has it been my good fortune to visit it in com- pany with other T. 0. S. members. Mr.Albert F. Ganier, who possesses an intimate knowledge of the geography of our State, tells me that this swamp is unmatched in this section of the country. While so far I have been in it only on winter days, Jack Calhoun has written of interesting May experiences there in the September, 1935, issue of this magazine. He speaks of it as a highland marsh, but most of it is now properly a swamp; only in the button- bush area do grasses and sedges typical of marshes grow. Ten years ago two pairs of King Rail were found nesting there and a Least Bittern was seen, and so it appears that a transition from marsh to swamp is nearing comple- tion. The stand of timber shows judicious use by the owner and one is re- minded of a park. The trees are mainly varieties of oak with a preponderance of southern red oak, pin oak and willow oak. They are well spaced and well shaped, reaching a height of upward of 60 feet, and are of greater age than one would guess by their size. Those on the drier part south of the railroad are larger. The place is fairly free from tangled undergrowth. Peat moss is 8 The Migrant March growing throughout the swamp and in spots large green cushions of “tree” moss seem scattered on the ground in order to form a pleasing contrast with the delicate pattern of willow oak leaves that lay a carpet of brown on the forest floor. At the end of the years 1938, 1939 and 1940 a winter census of birds was taken here and published in the Christmas census tabulation. The following two years we had to forego these trips and this season it was already the middle of February before a visit could be arranged. However a cold wave that was sweeping the country at the time made it wintry enough. It seems that one can count on an average of 40 species of winter birds in the swamp and its immediate surroundings. The composite list for the four trips comes to 56 species and shows mostly our common land birds. Carolina Wrens, Car- dinals, Towhees, Juncos and White-throated Sparrows are the typical inhabi- tants of what undergrowth there is. The companionable Chickadees and Tit- mice are about us constantly on our search through the swamp. One daily list showed 66 Titmice, another 75 of them. But the main features of the birdlife are the Woodpeckers and the Blue Jays, their presence easily ex- plained by the oversupply of acorns the place produces. Flickers reached a high of 37 one day. Downy Woodpeckers of 31, and Blue Jays of 51. An in- teresting encounter this year was finding 9 Red-headed Woodpeckers, a species not seen at all on other winter visits here. We watched them particularly and found them ranging in the upper parts of the trees where we believe they were feeding. One of them ducked into a hole about 25 feet up in a snag as we came near. We “pounded” him out again and stayed behind him while he made a wide circle to get back into his hiding place. Examination of the stomach contents of a collected specimen showed it full of macerated acorns of the willow oak. Either these birds come down to the plentiful supply still on the ground or they find stores hidden up high. Hairy and Pileated Wood- peckers are also present, though in small numbers. One of the latter had been excavating for grubs at the base of a rotten willow stump. The hole started at the roots only a few inches above ground level and actually went six or eight inches below the surface. One species that is closely connected with swamp habitat in winter is the Rusty Blackbird, and on the census made January 1, 1939, 130 of them were listed. They were in two flocks, the smaller one at the water’s edge of a small buttonbush pond a mile east of the large swamp and the larger one had temporarily repaired to a barn lot where hogs w’ere being fed on corn. This year we listed only two individuals near the water-filled part of the swamp. The clearest proof that we are in an exceptional place comes from the two birds of prey that rule the domain, the Red-shouldered Hawk by day and the Barred Owl by night. Ordinarily we look for them in lowlands and river bottoms. Here, in this upland swamp, they are found on every visit, in fact, the Red-shouldered Hawk’s loud “singing” is heard as soon as we leave the highway and it isn’t long before their nest is located. One year it was proven that two pairs of these hawks occupy this territory when on April 14, 1940, two nests with eggs were found. To the Barred Owl we are led by the noise the Crows are making as they give the victim of their play no rest. The mate of this owl we found lying dead beside the railroad tracks. Evidently it had been hit by a train at night and was killed by the impact. Barred Owls cling 1944 The Migrant 9 so much to their realm that it is reasonable to assume the other owl will stay on and find another mate. Emphasis on the strangeness of these two swamp rulers in an upland region was given by a pair of Red-tailed Hawks we found in a woods beyond the button-bush pond. Dr. Spofford discovered their well- built nest high up in a large chestnut-oak. It is indeed remarkable that these two species of hawks are such close neighbors. The land surrounding the swamp consists of stockfarms in high state of cultivation, yet it is not devoid of ornithological attractions. Among others there are Killdeer, Meadowlarks and Horned Larks in the fields, Tree Spar- rows and Fox Sparrows among the thicket-loving species in the gullies and the ever-entertaining Sparrow Hawk on the telephone lines along the highway. Clarksville, Tenn., February, 1944. — o HOY/ BIRDS SPEND THEIR WINTER NIGHTS— II A Symposium, by T. 0. S. Members In The Migrant for March, 1943, there appeared the first installment of observations under the above title. We requested our members to be on the lookout for further data on this interesting subject and now give these addi- tional observations. Probably another' installment will appear next year if enough reports are received meanwhile. — Editor. By G. R. Mayfield, Nashville, Tenn. — One of the largest winter bird roosts ever seen in Middle Tennessee has recently been in use in West Nashville, within the city limits. It is bounded roughly by Centennial Boulevard on the north, by 35th Avenue on the east and by 40th on the west. The whole area is about a half mile square and includes a deep, broad valley surrounded on all sides by steep slopes which are covered with a dense, almost impenetrable growth of haws, mock oranges, greenbriers, stunted hackberries and various shrubs. Large elms, hackberries, and other trees grow on the tops of the slopes and furnish a gathering place for the hundred of thousands of birds which spend a noisy night in this area. The fact that hardly a trail, much less a street, passes through this section makes it an ideal spot for the roost. In fact, the place was not definitely located until January, 1944, although it had been in use in 1942-1943 according to the testimony of some people living on the hills near by. One imaginative person declared that these “ricebirds” (Starlings, he meant) had fled from European battlefields to enjoy peace and quiet in Tennessee. He declared that they were so numerous and hardy that crossing the ocean was an easy task for such birds. As is usual with such roosts few birds are found there by day — only English Sparrows, a few White-throats and White-crowns, Towhees, Doves, Cardinals and some Flickers can be heard in late afternoons before sunset. But about sunset the clans begin to come in from all points of the compass; small flocks at first, then myriads of birds which cover the sky as they mill around before settling in the large bare trees. Then in groups of fifty to one hundred they drop down in the tangled thickets where they spend the night. It was estimated that approximately a million birds were roosting there during the middle of winter. The writer’s estimate of numbers in late Febru- ary, was 700,000 Starlings, 150,000 Robins, 100,000 Grackles and some 50,000 Cowbirds, Redwings, Rusty Blackbirds and English Sparrows. Others \ c A _ VosTWOODCS'1 fUPPER S0URIS r~- g.Ll 1 SLOWER SAllt "one !•/• v**'*rrr V 3NT - . ... ... -LOUGH ' »./ N*n .«*• *arrowwood \ ! U •-tCHASE L.'i •TAMARAC \j_ + •, • *^L0NG L. i RICEl.* SAND L.*' "/MILL E LACS( j \ s o. ! lacreek r~ waubay! i WIS. v NEC EDAH aLnA0?s i- # ' UNION* \« VALENTINE v( SLOUGH \ \ IOWA NEBR. 1 \ l ^CHAUTAUQUA ■ SQUAW CR. ( . | / • \ ILL A- .. 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