BIRD COURTSHIP 263 



the height was great, and they kept to equal alti- 

 tude in all the affairs of life, so that nothing can 

 be told of them with certainty. They have honied 

 there for years, but I never have seen a pair mate 

 or had a glimpse of anything that looked like court- 

 ing. How or where these things happen, no clue 

 can be had from our birds. On wing, at a height 

 of nearly forty feet, it takes sharper eyes than mine 

 to tell which is male and which female. 



But the love making of the bluebirds is cas- 

 ual. On the first day that the chirp of a bluebird 

 is heard, several males come around either Cabin 

 and orchard and two or three days later the females 

 arrive. The males court the females and dart at 

 each other by turns, often settling to the ground 

 and fighting stubbornly. One custom of the males 

 in courtship is to pick up a blade of dry grass, 

 carry it into one of the houses prepared for blue- 

 birds, and try to induce the females to enter. 

 They remain around the premises until several 

 pairs have mated and all the houses are filled, and 

 then the others go away. 



Whether a low voice is a pleasing thing in a bird, 

 whether signs of constancy, sweet temper, and judi- 

 cious motherhood can be detected and influence 

 the lover in his choice, who can say? The females 

 perch nearby and seem to await the outcome of 

 the battle for their favour, almost with indiffer- 

 ence. When the conqueror of all his rivals pre- 

 sents himself for her favour, the female usually 



