ANIMAL BEHAVIOR, WITH EXAMPLES 267 



been killed and eaten by them. As a rule, young birds, after 

 leaving the nest, never return to it, so I tried placing this young 

 bird near the nest again, but it showed dissatisfaction at once 

 and jumped to the ground. The other two young birds had, 

 in the meantime, lost self-control, and they, too, dropped to 

 the ground. After catching the birds several times and restoring 

 them to the nest, they showed the same antipathy toward it, 

 each time immediately leaving the site. I had not intended to 

 disperse the little family in the raspberry bush, but doubtless 

 they would have soon left of their own volition. 



During these manoeuvrings, the parent birds continually 

 manifested anxiety. They would repeatedly fall to the ground 

 as if stunned, then, recovering themselves, they hopped toward 

 me as if pleading for mercy. In the next moment, perhaps, they 

 would fly very near to me, chirping incessantly, but keeping 

 a safe distance near the top of a leafless twig. I had no sooner 

 departed a safe distance than the parents followed the little ones 

 into the grass, each one apportioning off its charges, which 

 they carefully cared for. As the commotion finally died away, 

 the photographer retired from the scene with the mixed feelings 

 of pain and pleasure, — pain at the thought of the suffering 

 fright caused the field sparrows' family by my intrusion, and 

 pleasure that I had at least obtained photographs from which 

 the drawing could be made, that Spizella's portrait may be 

 handed down to posterity. 



