favours open marshy meadows, flying close to the ground. The wood nymph 
     
     frequents lonely lanes, bramble patches and the open woods. Its blue- 
     
     centered eye spots are set in a yellowish band on the front wing. The 
     
     little wood satyr is smaller, brownish grey, with the prominent eye spots 
     
     set in the ground colour of its wings. 
     
    

    
     Hesperiidae, or skippers, differ from butterflies in a number of 
     
     ways too subtle to concern the casual observer. For the most part they 
     
     are small and stout bodied, tending to tawny in colour; their antennae 
     
     are widely separated at the base, and hooked at the tips. The front and 
     
     hind wings are held at different angles at rest. They take their name 
     
     from the swift erratic pattern of their flight. The most common one here 
     
     is probably the European skipper, an introduced pest of forage crops. In 
     
     common with their relatives, males have an oblique dark band or “slash” 
     
     across the wings; this is composed of dark scales which emit scent. 
     
    

    
     This concludes our short catalogue of common Island butterflies. 
     
     Look for these, and others, during your outdoor extrusions. 
     
    
   
   
    
     UNUSUAL BIRD SEEN AT MONTICELLO: by Gerald MacDonald 
     
    

    
     On October 29, 1995, while birdwatching on the north shore just back 
     
     of my home in Monticello, I observed an Eastern Meadowlark. I viewed the 
     
     bird from various angles over a period of roughly one hour. 
     
    

    
     When the bird first came in for a landing I knew this bird was 
     
     different - it hovered Bobolink-like prior to landing on grain stubble. 
     
     When it landed, I could distinctly hear its buzzy call note. I first 
     
     observed it for twenty minutes without disturbing the bird — I finally 
     
     mover closer eventually flushing the bird. When the bird rose on rapidly 
     
     beating wings, I observed the beautiful tail pattern. The bird circled 
     
     high in the air returning repeatedly to the same area although this time 
     
     it landed on a four foot high shrub along a hedgerow affording me a great 
     
     view from every angle. 
     
    

    
     The bright yellow breast had two upper dark patches, both right and 
     
     left, and one central dark patch on the breast. The darkness did not 
     
     appear to meet in a V shape. 
     
    

    
     I flushed the bird roughly three times and got an excellent view of 
     
     its habits both in flight and on the ground. I should add that when the 
     
     bird would fly, it reminded me of the Northern Flicker or a Sharp-tailed 
     
     Grouse --rapid wing beats alternating with sailing flight. 
     
    

    
     I phoned Dan McAskill plus Ray Cooke and, after discussing the 
     
     characteristics of the bird in books along with listening to Dan's tape 
     
     on the Eastern Meadowlark call, it all came together as evidence of a 
     
     great sighting. 
     
    
   
   
    
     Editor's note: Please refer to Island Naturalist No. 126 (Jan.-Feb., 
     
     1993) for a description of the identification characteristics of the 
     
     Western Meadowlark which is also possible at this time of year.