452 U.S. NATIONAL MUSEUM BULLETDT 23 7 paet i 



material was brought but the nest was thoroughly inspected — the 

 female, resting in the bowl, carefully shaped the structure and re- 

 arranged bits of vegetable fibers and catkins which made up the bulk 

 of its composition. There was none of the thistle-down which so 

 frequently is a part of the lining of a goldfinch nest." 



Gross (1938) writes: "On July 10, six days after the partially built 

 nest was discovered, the structure was completed. It was a beautiful 

 piece of nest architecture — 4 inches wide and 2.5 inches deep, with a 

 bowl 2.5 inches wide and 1.25 inches deep. The walls and bottom 

 were so firm and so compact that they seemed tight enough to hold 

 water." 



O. W. Knight (1908) mentions: "As the young get older the rim of 

 the nest becomes lined with a fringe of excrement, which is rather 

 exceptional, for most birds carry away the ejecta of their young and 

 drop it where it will not be offensive." Walkinshaw (1939), in ac- 

 cord, states: "The rim of the nest was very filthy during late nesting 

 life but occasionally both parents removed some of the faecal sacs 

 after they had fed the young." 



An atmosphere of happiness, characteristic of this cheerful little 

 species, pervades the nest life of the goldfinch. Gross (1938) brings 

 this out: 



The female did all the incubating but she was regularly fed by the male. His 

 coming was always announced by a series of clear, warbling notes. The moment 

 the female heard her mate she assumed a characteristic pose which involved 

 throwing her head back with the beak widely opened and rapidly fluttering her 

 wings. This action seemed to initiate the feeding response of the male. * * * 



During the first five or six days [after the eggs hatched] the female brooded the 

 young during both day and night. The major part of the food fed to the young 

 was delivered by the male, who also continued to feed the female during his 

 frequent short visits to the nest. No insects were seen in the beaks of the adults 

 at feeding-time, and all of the food delivered was a semi-digested milky pulp of 

 certain seeds. * * * 



* * * Several times the female was seen to stand on the rim of the nest opening 

 her beak and twitching her wings precisely as the young [now ten days old] did, 

 in apparent anticipation of receiving food from her mate. Although the male fed 

 her during the time of incubation and early life of the young, he did not respond to 

 her desires at this time. 



Walkinshaw (1938) says: "Evidently the reason that the male 

 circles the nesting area so persistently is that he brings food to the 

 incubating female. As he circles overhead, either she remains silent 

 and he continues, or she utters a sharp, often loud, 'tee-tee-tee-tee' at 

 which he immediately drops to the nest to feed her. This procedure 

 has been observed so often from the bhnd and at different nests that 

 it cannot be accidental." 



Margaret Drum (1939) states that males, initially, do not permit 

 other goldfinches to alight in their territories. If the male is absent 



