He was very tiny, and could not have been more than a day old at most. His neck was as thin as a darning needle but his stomach was as large as a hickory nut, and just as hard. Thinking the bird abnormal, I opened the stomach only to find everything right, the abdomen being big and hard because of the great number of bugs and flies it contained. July 16 I went out of the city, so did not see the young leave the house. For several days previous to this, a baby Martin was constantly at the door, and I believe there was only one young bird.
My last year’s family consisted of only two young birds, but one of which lived to fly from the house.
Neither eggs nor birds were found in the east room. Now, was this a polygamous family, or was it one pair of Martins and a non-mating female? Might it not have been my family of last year? I will appreciate answers from readers of Bird-Lore.—(Mrs.) May S. Danner, Canton, Ohio.
On November 7, 1908, I had been standing for some time motionless, watching the antics of a Winter Wren which was foraging in a brush-heap piled against a fence. The Wren was very much occupied and paid no attention to me, as I stood about ten feet away. I had on a brown suit, and was certainly not a very conspicuous object. Suddenly the Wren appeared in a corner of the fence with a long morsel, the larva of some insect, in his bill. Evidently this a tid-bit which should be eaten leisurely for enjoyment. At any rate, after peering about he caught a glimpse of me standing conveniently near. And much to my surprise, with no hesitation, he flew straight at me and alighted on the side of my coat. I could feel his movements through the cloth. He clung there several seconds. But, in my attempt to get a better look at him, I doubtless moved. For without a sound or show of alarm he flew back to the fence and finished his morsel. I do not think the Wren implied that I was a stick, but he certainly believed me to be a tree!—Edward J. F. Marx, Easton, Pa.
A Distributional List of the Birds of California. By Joseph Grinnell. Pacific Coast Avifauna No. 11; Contribution from the Museum of Vertebrate Zoölogy of the University of California. Published by the Cooper Ornithological Club, Hollywood, California, October 21, 1915. Roy. 8vo, 217 pages, 3 plates.
Dr. Grinnell admits to this list 541 species and subspecies as unquestionably Californian and includes in a Hypothetical List 61 additional species whose standing as Californian is doubtful.
“The systematic order is that of the American Ornithologists’ Union Check-List (1910), except that within groups of species or subspecies a more natural arrangement is sometimes adopted, for example by according with geographical sequence. The A. O. U. order is thus accepted here because of the convenience thereby admittedly secured, in concording with the bulk of current ornithological literature.” (Page 7.)