EUrOUS HUMMINGBIRD 401 



outside of an old brown bathrobe. An old felt hat was covered with 

 boughs, whicli hung down all around to hide the observer's head and 

 face while permitting observation through the interstices of the 

 foliage." Under this disguise, he could stand, motionless as a tree, 

 with his eyes within 10 or 12 inches of the nest and slightly above it. 



Before the eggs hatched the female incubated almost constantly 

 with absences of only a few minutes; one day, while the sun was 

 shining on the nest most of the time, she was gone for more than an 

 hour; during two hours of watching, on the day before the one egg 

 hatched, the bird left the nest five times, for intervals varying from 

 5 to 19 minutes. One of the two eggs did not hatch, and, us the bird 

 did not remove the remnants, Mr. DuBois did so. 



After the one young bird hatched the female brooded it with fre- 

 quent intervals of absence, much like those taken during incubation, 

 up to the time that it was seven days old; from that time on, she 

 "was absent much of the time during the mornings. In the after- 

 noons she had to shelter the nestling from the sun." 



When the nestling was two days old, it was fed only three times 

 between 8 : 45 a. m. and 6 p. m., but the observer was absent from 

 12 m. to 1 : 33 p. m. and from 3 : 30 to 3 : 45 p. m. "Wlien four days 

 old, the average of seven known intervals was about 44 minutes. 

 When six days old, the average of 11 known intervals was 32 minutes. 

 The frequency of feeding increased in the latter portion of the day." 



The number of regurgitations for each feeding varied from two to 

 live ; the total time occupied for five pumpings and subsequent exam- 

 ination and tidying of the nest was somewhat less than one minute. 

 On July 20, when the nestling was two days old, "at 10 : 30, there was 

 no pushing up and down ; the parent seemed to pump the fluid by the 

 slightest visible motion of her own throat. At 5 : 35 the same day 

 she poked rather vigorously while regurgitating; and two days later, 

 the poking was extremely vigorous. As observed on the 24th, the 

 young bird's head moved up and down v/ith the mother's bill. Dur- 

 ing one of the feedings, as I stood close to the nest with my head 

 covered, I could see the liquid w^elling up in the young bird's mouth. 

 At the age of 51/2 days, the young one responded very vigorously and 

 took the whole length of the parent's bill into his throat. 



"The alvine discharges of the young hummingbird were forcibly 

 ejected in a manner to render nest cleaning unnecessary. Very close 

 observation from the balsam cloak, on July 22, indicated that the 

 l^arent did not take excrement from the young or nest; nor did the 

 young emit excrement after being fed. On the 23d, while the parent 

 was absent, I observed the method employed by the nestling, then 

 five days old. Following a slight shaking of the nest, it struggled 

 to reach the top of the high nest wall. The great depth of the nest 



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