290 THE NATURE-STUDY REVIEW y 2 :9 _ DEC ., i 9 o6 



venient hillside, once shortly after three o'clock, and once before 

 three, and after a luncheon of crackers and milk, were ready to listen 

 to the first notes of the pewee, the wood-thrush, and the cardinal 

 grosbeak, to be followed a little later by a grand chorus of the 

 awakening voices of bird-land. 



Then came the great day July 13, when the class was divided into 

 relays, and each given hours in which to watch a certain pair of birds. 

 We had discovered many nests, but because of accessibility and con- 

 venient hiding places for observers, we chose those of an orchard- 

 oriole, a pewee, a phoebe, and a wren. 



Now we meant to find out what these birds did in a day — just how 

 much work they did, just how much relaxation they had, and we were 

 prepared for the longest clay's work we ever did. 



The first relays were at the appointed places before the first dawn 

 of day, and the last left only after the male birds had flown away to 

 their resting-places, and the females had retired for the night. There 

 was no moment from dawn till evening when the opera-glasses were 

 not focused on the nests and no movement of the birds passed 

 unnoticed. 



Now for the facts gained: The report of the orchard oriole was 

 given by Mr. John H. Brackemyre, Miss Edith Holloway, Miss Bertha 

 Hormell, Miss Eulala Hormell and Mr. Frank H. Wheeler. 



There were two young birds in the nest, which was in a small 

 peach tree, about six feet from the ground, and observation began 

 at 3:30 a.m. and continued until 6:47 p.m., making fifteen hours and 

 seventeen minutes. 



Feeding began at 4:35 a.m. and ended at 6:10 p.m. The young 

 birds were fed sixty-nine times, five times only by the male bird; 

 and the average time between feeding periods was twelve minutes. 

 From 4:35 a.m. to 10 a.m. the average time between feedings was eight 

 minutes; — from 10 a.m. to 2:45 P -M., sixteen minutes; from 2:45 

 p.m. to 3:45 p.m., eight minutes: from 3:45 p.m. to 6:10 p.m., 

 thirteen minutes. 



When the female approached the nest, she always looked, warily 

 about and paused on a dead limb near the nest, from a few seconds 

 to five minutes before entering, but the male darted in at once with- 

 out fear. 



Twice during the forenoon the female brooded her young 

 thirty-four minutes and twice in the afternoon for seven and eight 

 minutes. 



