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THE GUIDE TO NATURE 



seeds in feeding boxes, and the only 

 way I can keep them from carrying off 

 suet is by making pockets of half-inch 

 mesh chicken wire on the trees. The 

 nuthatches crack the seeds of the sun- 

 flower in a crevice of the bark and 

 leave the empty shells there. 



A little patience will tame the winter 

 birds, and afford much pleasure and 

 profit in feeding and studying them, 

 with opportunities for photographing 

 them. Any boy can make feeding 

 shelves or boxes and even the rudest 

 device answers. Accustom the birds 

 to your presence while eating and very 

 soon chickadees will come to your 

 hands or head for food, and nuthatches 

 can be persuaded soon, but not "Dow- 

 ny." 



The Redstart. 



BY EDWIN L. JACK, PORTLAND, MAINE. 



The favorite haunt of the redstart is 

 in damp, thickly wooded locations. He 

 is a valuable insect exterminator, and 

 I do not know of any bird that presents 

 a more perfect picture of happiness and 

 contentment as he darts in and out 

 among the foliage searching for food. 



As a fine example of bird architec- 

 ture, the redstart's nest is indeed 

 worthy of study. It is not only neat 

 and attractive in appearance, but is a 

 fine sample of protective coloring. 



In my location the redstart most fre- 

 quently places its nest in small maple 

 and gray birch trees, and at a distance 

 of fifteen to forty feet from the ground. 

 Regardless of this fact, the nest here 

 illustrated was built less than two feet 

 from the ground. By the use of strong 

 plant fibres and great skill the birds 

 secured the nest on the first limb of a 

 little maple tree. It was lined Avith the 

 finest of grasses and dry pine needles, 

 while the edges and sides were com- 

 pletely covered with silver gray plant 

 fibres, perfectly resembling the color 

 of the surrounding branches. 



When I first discovered the nest it 

 was empty, but appeared finished and 

 perfect in every detail. I visited it for 

 three days in succession and came to 

 the conclusion that the birds had de- 

 serted it for some reason, for during 

 the time I was about the nest, not 

 once did I catch a glimpse of its own- 

 ers : but camera work on other nests 



in that locality took me to the red- 

 starts' location daily and one morning 

 I found that the nest contained one 

 tiny egg, profusely speckled with 

 brown, and four days later the nest 

 contained the full set of five eggs. 



For eleven days I made visits to that 

 nest and watched its contents and on 



NEST OF THE REDSTART. 

 "The edges and sides were completely covered with 

 silver gray plant fibres, perfectly resembling the color 

 of the svtrrounding branches." 



the twelfth day the mother bird 

 brought off a brood of five very tiny 

 youngsters, and their mouths were 

 ever open for food. 



During the period the mother bird 

 was brooding the eggs, I had secured 

 several studies of her on the nest, with 

 my camera. By the time the young 

 were out, the parent birds had become 

 so accustomed to me that I could sit 

 within three feet of the nest and secure 

 a perfect focus without their paying 

 the slightest attention to me. I have 

 found that in bird photography, if one 

 works about a nest with care and 

 patience, being careful as to making 

 unnecessary noise and quick move- 

 ments, birds soon come to know 

 friends from enemies and the results 



