History of Franklin County, Indiana : her people, industries and institutions, Part 48

Author: Reifel, August J
Publication date: 1915
Publisher: Indianapolis, Ind. : B.F. Bowen
Number of Pages: 1648

USA > Indiana > Franklin County > History of Franklin County, Indiana : her people, industries and institutions > Part 48

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The above birds nested at my home, near Brookville, Indiana, in the summer of 1910, in the yard, garden, orchard and the barn-yard. Several other species nested in the nearby vicinity, such as the downy woodpecker (dryobates pubescens), yellow-billed cuckoo (coccyzus americanus) meadow

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lark (sturnella magna), purple grackle (quiscalus quiscula), lark sparrow (chondestes grammacus), field sparrow (spizella pusilla), song sparrow (melospiza fasciata), yellow-breasted chat (icteria virens), hooded warbler (sylvania mitrata), mocking-bird (mimus polyglottos), chickadee (parus atricapillius), tufted titmouse (parus bicolor), blue-gray gnattcatcher (poli- optila cærulea) and dickcissel (spiza americana).

I could mention a number of other birds that build their nests near the dwellings of man, but space will not permit me to do so. I will add, how- ever, that if you, my readers, would have about you these beautiful and useful birds, which are almost the best friends of mankind, do not allow English sparrows (passer domesticus) to come near your home, and you will soon find yourself in the midst of the songsters. The incredible num- bers of English sparrows (passer domesticus) now found almost everywhere have driven our native birds away.

THE SLAUGHTER OF THE INNOCENTS.

I will write a few lines in regards to our beautiful American egret (ardea egretta), our sole authority for the inclusion of this magnificent and once abundant heron. But its former occurrence serves to point a moral very much needed, and to adorn a tale, which, if trite to some ears, ought to make the ears of certain others tingle. Know then, that the "aigrette" of fashionable millinery is solely the product of this and allied species of herons, and that in their pursuit, at the behest of thoughtless women, de- praved men, called plume-hunters, have reduced to the solitude of a few impenetrable swamps of the Everglades, this snow-white splendor which was once abundant from Florida to Oregon.

The peculiar cruelty of this war of extermination lies in the fact that in order to secure the "aigrettes," which are to nod and dance on some lady's bonnet, the birds which own them must be shot during the nesting season ; the magnificent train of feathers is provided only at this time of the year, as a bride is granted her best robes for the wedding day and the honey- moon ; and if the butchers, whom the feather-merchants hire, were to wait until the young birds were raised, the wedding garments of the parents would either be worn threadbare in service, or else cast aside. Therefore, since it must be done, as our gentle ladies have decreed, the only way is to visit a colony during the breeding season, shoot all the old birds "who will not of course desert their nestlings," snatch out their nuptial plumage, and leave their carcasses to putrify, while the starving young call down from the tree-

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tops to ears that hear not. Thus, a single plume-hunter has killed hundreds of egrets in a day, and in the palmy days of the "industry" certain gangs were able to kill tens of thousands in a single season .*

Of course this slaughter is prohibited by law in the United States, but the mischief is nearly all accomplished so far as our own egrets are con- cerned. Besides that, the inducements held out to the plume-hunters by the criminal dealers are very large. It is estimated that a villain named Mum- ford cleared up thirty-five hundred dollars as the result of three days' suc- cessful law-breaking in a Florida swamp. And this sort of thing will con- tinue just as long as thoughtless or spiritless women will submit to being im- posed upon by lawless dealers, in the name of a false and man-made goddess, called "Fashion."

If this were a dead issue we could let the egret go; but there is no ap- peasing this lustful god, whose belly is a Jew's purse. South America, Africa, the islands of the sea, are being ransacked and ravished by the emissaries of the 'feather-merchants. The egrets are done for; but now, forsooth, "para- dise aigrettes" are demanded, and that these may be supplied, out-of-the-way places, which civilization will one day require for the highest uses, are being desolated for all time. It is not merely that incalculable suffering is being cansed to innocent life, but that we are spending the birth-right of our own and our children's future, which makes this slaughter for millinery purposes an economic crime. The stateliness of the egret is too vital a part of our landscape to be so wantonly sacrificed.

UNIVERSALITY OF BIRD LIFE.

A traveler may, in many parts of the world, journey from one week's end to another without coming across a single mammal or reptile, but few, indeed, are the regions where bird-life, in some form, will not present itself more or less abundantly to his gaze, and in no country is this exuberance of bird-life, as contrasted with the apparent scarcity of mammals and reptiles, more remarkable than in Franklin county, Indiana. This abundance is largely due to the great majority of birds being diurnal in their habits, whereas most mammals are nocturnal, but it is chiefly owing to the birds being more numerous in most parts of the county, both as regards individuals and species. On this account birds have always aroused a widespread interest even among those who pay no particular attention to natural history, and in addition to it we have the beauty of their form, the gorgeous hues with

* The slaughter of the egrets and herons by the plume-hunters is the subject I gen- erally select for my Audubon Society lectures.

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which their plumage is so frequently adorned, and the power of melodious song with which so many members of the class are endowed. Then, again, the many interesting points connected with their habits, and more especially their conjugal affection and the care they bestow on their helpless young, have combined to aid in producing the universal enthusiasm for what have been most appropriately designated "our feathered friends."

As a result of this widespread popularity, the literature devoted to birds is far more extensive than that relating to any other group of creatures of equal size. And it may, perhaps, be questioned whether, in spite of their many undoubted claims to special interest, birds have not attracted rather more than their share of attention, for, after all, the whole of the members of the class are wonderfully alike in general structure, even its most diver- gent representatives presenting no approach to the differences distinguishing nearly-allied mammalian orders. It is, to great extent, owing to this remark- able structural uniformity that such different views still exist as to the classi- fication of birds.

EGG PECULIARITIES.

It is useless for me to mention here that birds produce their young by means of eggs, covered with a hard calcareous shell, often remarkable for beauty of coloration. Into the structure of an egg it will be quite un- necessary to enter in this work, but the following remarks will be found of general interest. Although the number of eggs laid and incubated together is generally pretty constant in each kind of bird, yet there is great specific variation in this respect. The murres and shearwaters, for instance, lay but a single egg, while clutches of the quail (colinus virginianus) and prairie hen (tympanuchus americanus) will contain from twelve to sixteen or more. In form, eggs vary from an almost spherical shape, as in the owls, to different modifications of the elliptical or oval. The latter shape, in which one end is smaller and more pointed than the other, although far from being universal, is decidedly the most common, this conical shape allowing a larger number of eggs to be accommodated in a circular nest than would otherwise be possible, and it may be noticed that, when only a pair of eggs is laid, this form is seldom assumed. Such eggs as narrow very much to a point, and thus take a pear-shape form, pertain mainly to the wading-birds and their terrestrial allies, the plovers, of the order limecolæ, four of these being laid in a nest, their size being larger in proportion to the bulk of the bird by which they are laid; their position in the nest, with their pointed ends meeting together in the center, causes them to occupy the smallest possible amount of space.

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Sea birds, like the pigeon guillemot (cepphus columba) and razor-billed auk (alca torda), which lay one or two eggs on barren ledges or rocks, likewise have them pointed, as being much less liable to roll, which would be the case if they were spherical.

Although the size of the eggs generally varies proportionately to that of the paren't bird, yet this is by no means invariably the case, and it appears that in birds of which the young are hatched in a helpless condition, the eggs are relatively smaller than those in which the young come into the world fully fledged. Moreover, it is the birds that have helpless offspring that usually build the most carefully constructed nests, while those that have fully-fledged young lay their eggs in very rude nests or on the bare ground. As examples of birds of equal size, laying differently sized eggs, may be men- tioned the long-billed curlew (numenius longirostris) and the American raven (corvus corax sinuatus), while the bird which has the relatively smallest egg is the cat-bird (galeoscoptes carolinensis) and that with the largest is the spotted sandpiper (actitis macularia).

The texture of the outer surface of the shell is liable to much variation, kingfishers and woodpeckers laying smooth and porcelaneous eggs, while those of the ibises and ducks are dull and chalky, those of the American flamingo (phœnicopterus ruber) coated with a calcareous outer film, and those of the emu (bromaius novæ hollandia) are rough and pitted. As re- gards coloration, no relation can be traced between eggs and the birds by which they are laid, and it is probable that, originally, birds resembled reptiles in laying white eggs, this want of colour being retained, or perhaps re- acquired, in the eggs of the majority of birds which lay in holes. The larger number of eggs are, however, variously colored by the deposition of pig- ment on or near the outer surface of the shell. The color may be either uni- form over the whole surface, or it may take the form of irregular washes, blotches, lines, or more or less nearly circular spots, upon either a white or uniformly-colored ground. Very little is, however, at present understood with regard to the signification of egg-coloration. Frequently the different species of a group lay very similarly colored eggs, as is exemplified by the warblers and buntings, but this is by no means invariably the case, as is well shown by different members of the thrush family. In many cases the coloration of the eggs is evidently adapted to the hue of their natural sur- roundings, as is well exemplified by sandpipers, dulins, plovers, and their allies, and likewise by the pheasants and partridge. To verify the above

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statements I have consulted my extensive private oological collection, consist- ing of over sixteen hundred eggs, collected from all parts of the globe .*

BUILDING THE HOME.

The construction of bird's nests. As soon as the birds have mated, they at once look out for suitable nesting-places, unless they should belong to the class of birds that have regular domiciles, to which they will return from year to year. The location, architecture and the material that enter into the building of the nest, are quite different. Birds of prey build their nests on lofty trees or high cliffs, the running birds usually build on the ground, others on the branches, or in the hollows of trees, sometimes excavated by themselves, as in the manner of the woodpeckers. Aquatic birds build their nests on the shore among weeds, rushes and grass, others in sand-banks, like the bank swallow (clivicola riparia) and belted kingfisher (ceryle alcyon). Some fasten their nests to rushes and leave them to float on the surface of the water, as do the grebes and the gallinules where the water alternately rises and falls. Some sea-birds build in rocky caves, like the puffins.

The concealment of the nest seems to be the great object with nearly all our birds. When it is built in some open place, it is so constructed as not to be easily observed. Some birds scarcely build a nest at all, but lay their egg on the bare ground or on the surface of a rock or a high cliff. Some only make a small cavity in which to deposit their eggs, other fill the cavity with some soft and warm material. Some form the walls of their nests with loam, which, made into mortar or paste by the saliva of the bird, becomes hard and durable. Some nests are put loosely together, others are made in a more regular form out of twigs, woody fibers, etc., while other regularly formed nests are neatly lined with fine, thread-like roots, hair or feathers. Some nests are roofed or arched over, with the entrance on the side, forming a kind of tube through which the birds creep in and out. The architecture of the nests is as varied as the birds that build them. The principal use of the nest is to serve as a depository for the eggs and a cradle for the young. Some birds build warm and well-lined nests, to which they regularly retire at night, especially in the winter season.

The female bird usually constructs the nest, while the male brings the materials. Among other birds, the male acts as a sort of architect or super- intendent, watching and directing the female during the progress of the work, and entertaining his companion with sweet songs to encourage her

* A book in preparation by the author, Jos. F. Honecker, of Spokane, Washington, "My Oological Collection."

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in her agreeable work. The males of polygamous birds take no part in the construction of the nests.

The parent birds render no assistance to the young to facilitate their coming out of the shell. But as soon as they have effected their entrance into the world, they are cared for by their parents with assiduity and tenderness. At first they are fed with the tenderest food, then on that which is more substantial, and, as soon as they are able to leave the nest, they are taught to procure their own food and take care of themselves. All birds manifest great love for their offspring. They will protect them from harm and peril and resort to all sorts of tricks to avert danger or turn away an enemy, risk- ing their own lives in defence of their progeny. These, in turn, are in like degree attached to their parents, and listen obediently to their every call.

As soon as the young birds can be safely left to shift for themselves, several kinds of birds commence their journeyings to other and warmer coun- tries. This journeying, when it occurs regularly every year, and at a certain time, in an appointed direction, is called "migration." But it assumes the name of "wandering" when the traveling is the result of necessity, and, therefore, takes place neither at a certain time nor in a certain direction, ceasing when the cause that produces it is removed. It is also called "ramb- ling" or "strolling" when the journey is confined within narrow limits, and is merely the result of a desire for a change of residence or for the sake of more abundant food.

THE PERIODIC EXODUS.

Most of our song-birds make their migrations every fall, and return again in spring. Aquatic birds start out on their migration long before the severely cold weather sets in. The majority of the North American birds migrate in a more or less southern direction, according to prospects of find- ing plenty of food and a good winter harbor; rivers, valleys and mountains serve for guidance to migratory birds. Sometimes they fly in pairs and sometimes in large flocks. The feeble travel by night, the bold and strong both day and night. And before they start out, they grow restless and wander about as if prompted to travel by an irresistible impulse. Young birds taken from the nest, and confined in cages, manifest this same rest- lessness when the migrating season arrives.

It is a well-known fact that the birds that leave us the latest in the fall are the first to return in spring, and those that leave the earliest are the last to return ; birds that leave us in November will return in February. North American birds travel to the southern parts of the United States and to

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Central America; those that dwell between the thirty-seventh and twenty- fourth parallels of north latitude, migrate south to regions within the torrid zone.

All migrating birds, before they start, hold regular meetings, remaining in session for several days. They call in all the birds that are passing by, and as soon as the flock has become of enormous size, the meeting is broken up and the long flight begins. During the progress of these meetings, regu- lar leaders are chosen, and such birds as are judged incapable of remaining a long time on the wing and of keeping up with their companions are re- jected. Some ornithologists even claim that birds supposed to be too feeble to endure the tedious journey are put to death, but from my personal ob- servation I am unable to verify this statement. The migratory flocks fly in two rows or lines, so formed as to be gradually approaching nearer each other, and both ending in the one point, so as to form a figure resembling the letter V. Some fly in direct lines, and others in disorder, mostly ; those that fly very high sometimes take suddenly a downward course, fly low for a short time, then rise to the same height as before. The weaker birds fly only in the daytime, and then as much as possible from tree to tree and from forest to forest, using the trees for rest and shelter at night and during wind-storms, Aquatic birds sometimes take to the water and swim when they come upon a river or other body of water which they can use for helping them forward in their migration. The progress of migratory birds is aided by favorable winds, and retarded, often for several days, by contrary winds. The excitement and restlessness that birds manifest before and during their journey, ceases soon after they arrive at their destination. But wherever a bird may stroll, however long or short its journeyings, and however long or short the time of its sojourn abroad, its home is in the locality where it builds its nest and rears its young.

The utility of birds to mankind is beyond description, for they are our guardians against insects, whose ravages would, were it not for the birds, lay waste the entire globe. Birds are held in high esteem even among the Indians. From the earliest of my boyhood days, birds have always been my favorites, for from them, more than from all other creatures, we select specimens for our collections, and of many of these, and of our domestic birds, we get a supply of feathers for use and ornament, while their flesh and eggs furnish wholesome and delicious food.

The protection of birds has often been made the subject of legal enact- ment, but it is to be regretted that such legislation has not given the pro- tection that should be afforded. Many birds, seemingly useless and even

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destructive, especially the birds of prey, will be found, on closer observation, to be among our greatest benefactors.

Before I give a list of all the birds known to occur in Franklin county, I wish to mention that I greatly regret that I could not enter into writing of their life history at this occasion, but that would fill a volume in itself. What I have already written in this article would only be a preface for such a work, for if there is anything I love to do it is reading, talking or writing about the birds.

I must, however, extract a few quotations from the matchless work of Dr. A. K. Fisher, "The Hawks and Owls of the United States in Their Relation to Agriculture," U. S. Department of Agriculture, Division of Ornithology and Mammalogy, Bulletin No. 3, 1893. As the result of a large number of stomach examinations of our rapacious birds, it has been shown that these birds are mostly beneficial to the farmers, who should demand their protection, instead of destroying them at every opportunity, and in some places even paying a bounty on their heads.

A LIST OF MISCELLANEOUS MENUS.

Swallow-tailed Kite (Elanoides forficatus)-Of 6 stomachs examined, all contained insects ; 2, lizards ; I, tree-frog.

Mississippi Kite (Ictinia mississippiensis)-Of 4 stomachs examined, all contained insects.

Marsh Hawk (Circus hudsonius)-Of 124 stomachs examined, 7 con- tained poultry or game birds ; 34, other birds ; 57, mice ; 22, other mammals ; 7, reptiles ; 2, frogs; 14, insects ; I, indeterminate matter and 8 were empty.

Sharp-shinned Hawk (Accipiter velox)-Of 159 stomachs examined, 6 contained poultry or game birds ; 99, other birds ; 6, mice; 5, insects, and 52 were empty.

Cooper's Hawk (Accipiter cooperi)-Of 133 stomachs examined, 34 contained poultry or game birds : 52, other birds; II mammals; I, frog; 3, lizards ; 2, insects, and 39 were empty.

American Goshawk (Accipiter atricapillus)-Of 28 stomachs examined, 9 contained poultry or game birds; 2, other birds ; 10, mammals; 3, insects ; I, centiped, and 8 were empty.

Red-tailed Hawk (Buteo borealis)-Of 562 stomachs examined, 54 contained poultry or game birds; 51, other birds; 278, mice; 131, other mammals; 37, batrachians or reptiles; 47, insects ; 8, crawfish; I, centipeds; 13, offal; and 89 were empty.

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Red-shouldered Hawk (Buteo lineatus)-Of 220 stomachs examined, 3 contained poultry ; 12, other birds; 102, mice; 40, other mammals; 20, reptiles; 39, batrachians; 92, insects; 16, spiders; 7, crawfish; I, earth- worms; 2, offal; 3, fish, and 14 were empty.

Swainson's Hawk (Buteo swainsoni)-Of 18 stomachs examined, 7 contained small mammals; 8, insects ; 3, reptiles ; 3, batrachians, and 3 were empty.

Broad-winged Hawk (Buteo latissimus)-Of 65 stomachs examined, 2 contained small birds; 15, mice; 13, other mammals; II, reptiles; 13, bat- rachians ; 30, insects : 2, earthworms; 4, crawfish, and 7 were empty.

American Rough-legged Hawk (Archibuteo lagopus sancti-johannis) -Of 49 stomachs examined, 40 contained mice; 5, other mammals; I, liz- ards; I, insects, and 4 were empty.

Golden Eagle (Aquila chrysætos)-Of 6 stomachs examined, I con- tained feathers; 2, mammals ; 2, carrion, and I was empty.

Bald Eagle (Haliæetus leucocephalus)-Of 21 stomachs examined, I contained a game bird; 5, mammals ; 9, fish ; 2, carrion, and 5 were empty.

Duck Hawk (Falco peregrinus anatum)-Of 20 stomachs examined, 7 contained poultry or game birds; 9, other birds; I, mice; 2, insects, and 4 were empty.

Pigeon Hawk (Falso columbarius)-Of 56 stomachs examined, 2 con- tained poultry ; 41, small birds; 2, mice ; 16, insects, and 5 were empty.

Sparrow Hawk (Falco sparverius)-Of 320 stomachs examined, I con- tained a gamebird; 53, other birds; 89, mice; 12, other mammals; 12, rep- tiles or batrachinas ; 215, insects ; 29, spiders ; and 29 were empty.

Osprey (Pandion haliaetus carolinensis)-Of 12 stomachs examined, II contained fish; and I was empty.

American Barn Owl (Strix pratincola)-Of 39 stomachs examined, I contained poultry; 3, other birds; 17, mice; 17, other mammals; 4, insects ; and 7 were empty.

Long-eared Owl (Asio wilsonianus)-Of 107 stomachs examined, I contained a game bird; 15, other birds ; 84, mice ; 5, other mammals; I, in- sects and 15 were empty.

Short-eared Owl (Asio accipitrinus)-Of IOI stomachs examined, II contained small birds ; 77, mice ; 7, other mammals ; 7, insects, and 14 were empty.

Barred Owl (Syrnium nebulosum)-Of 109 stomachs examined, 5 contained poultry or game birds ; 13, other birds; 46, mice ; 18, other mam-

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mals; 4, frogs; I, a lizard; 2, fish; 14, insects; 2, spiders ; 9, crawfish, and 20 were empty.

Great Gray Owl (Scotiaptex cinerea)-Of 9 stomachs examined, I contained a small bird ; 7, mice, and 4, other mammals.

Saw-whet Owl (Nyctala acadica)-Of 22 stomachs examined, 17 con- tained mice : I, a bird ; I, an insect ; and 3 were empty.

Screech Owl (Megascops asio)-Of 255 stomachs examined, I con- tained poultry : 38, other birds ; 91, mice; II, other mammals; 2, lizards; 4, batrachians; 1, fish ; 100, insects ; 5, spiders ; 9, crawfish ; 7, miscellaneous; 2, scorpions ; 2, earthworms, and 43 were empty.

Great Horned Owl (Bubo virginianus)-Of 127 stomachs examined, 31 contained poultry or game birds ; 8, other birds; 13, mice; 65, other man- mals ; I, a scorpion ; 1, fish ; 10, insects, and 17 were empty.

Snowy Owl (Nyctea nyctea) -- Of 38 stomachs examined, 2 contained game birds ; 9, other birds ; IS, mice ; 2, other mammals ; and 12 were empty.

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History of Franklin County, Indiana : her people, industries and institutions, Part 48

Author: Reifel, August J Publication date: 1915 Publisher: Indianapolis, Ind. : B.F. Bowen Number of Pages: 1648

Author: Reifel, August J
Publication date: 1915
Publisher: Indianapolis, Ind. : B.F. Bowen
Number of Pages: 1648