218 BULLETIN 17 6, UNITED STATES NATIONAL MUSEUM 



away in two parts. As the shell membrane dried the two cups 

 closed again forming a complete empty shell case. At this time 

 the first young was being brooded while the second, in a wet be- 

 draggled condition, awkwardly and weakly wavered its head beneath 

 the bill of the female. The faint peeping notes uttered by the 

 youngster were answered with guttural purring notes of the proud 

 and triumphant mother. After the down of the second youngster 

 was dry it joined its fellow under the breast of the mother. The 

 Ggg, shell was not removed until the following morning. The incu- 

 bation period for this set of eggs was definitely established to be 

 19 days. 



The next day the female attempted to brood the young continu- 

 ously. One of the young, however, persisted in its attempts to 

 break away from parental care in spite of the warning notes of its 

 mother. In one instance the mother dragged the one young under 

 her body until within reach of the unruly youngster, which was 

 quickly and violently tucked under her breast with something of an 

 attitude of rebuff. 



On the second day the young frequently appeared in the open 

 and at such times often pecked at the mother's beak as if recognizing 

 it to be the door of a well-filled cupboard. The young had not yet 

 been fed, as they were still dependent on the yolk provided by the 

 egg and stored in their bodies at the time of hatching. The female 

 remained with the young throughout the day, whereas the male did 

 not make his appearance until 8 : 50 in the evening. He announced 

 his arrival with a sharp call as he landed on the roof. His call was 

 immediately answered by the female, whereupon he made his way 

 to the nest and without ceremony or delay delivered the first food 

 received by the young. 



J[ was not prepared to see the male feed the young because the 

 male of the preceding summer (another individual) never assisted in 

 the care of the young. This striking difference in individual be- 

 havior emphasizes the point that it is not safe to generalize on 

 observations of a single individual. 



The next morning the female was brooding her young, and being 

 accustomed to my daily presence she allowed me to reach under her 

 breast to remove the young without exhibiting the least bit of fear, 

 A female nesting on another roof when visited for the first time 

 scooted away hurriedly, fluttered helplessly on the roof, enacting 

 a perfect imitation of a crippled bird, a ruse to attract my attention 

 away from her young. When I followed her she quickly flew away. 

 On subsequent visits this bird stood her ground, elevated her wings 

 in an upright position, and hissed at me in defiance of my approach. 



The following notes are from observations made of the young that 

 were hatched on the high-school roof the preceding year (1921). 



