The Song Sparrows 91 



that have ever\ where increased rather than diminished. 



The ditTerence in tlie time when nesting is begun by different species of birds 

 is a most fascinating studv. B\- the middle of March the winter Song Sparrows 

 will have taken wing, and from that time until well into April 

 The Nest the summer residents will come along, not in flocks, but one or 



two at a time, appearing near the old nesting places. April is 

 probably the best lime to hear the most voluble and unguarded song of the 

 Sweet Singers, for, as they do not begin to nest until early May, there is no 

 necessitv of secrecv of movement or choice of singing perch. 



It is a fact to be noted, that the hardiest birds, or those first to arrive, are by 

 no means those that nest first. The large birds. Owls, Hawks, etc., take the lead 

 ■of the smaller birds ; the Bluebird, White-breasted Nuthatch and Robin only 

 nest in April. The Song Sparrow and Phoebe (who returns in March) wait 

 until Mav; and the Goldfinch and Cedar Birds, both sturdy winter residents, 

 wait until almost the end of June. 



The Song Sparrow conceals its nest with the greatest care, either in the mazes 

 of a low bush, in the division of the branches of a shrub just above ground, 

 Avhere bits of bark and dry leaves have colletced, or on the ground itself between 

 grass tussocks that not only conceal the nest, but are sometimes woven in with 

 the rootlets, plant fibers and shredded bark of which the nest is formed. Like 

 the Chipping Sparrow or Hair Bird, it sometimes uses horsehair for an inner 

 lining, and the four or five bluish white eggs, profusely marked with reddish 

 brown, are always softly bedded by fine grasses. 



The Sweet Singer does not always use the best of judgment in choosing 

 the structure that is to hold its nest, though this I have found applies strictly 

 to the second nest built in middle or late June, when, being attracted to the 

 flower garden b\- the bird-bath in the corner, a pair of Sparrow^s built a nest 

 among the flower-heads of a bunch of feverfews, that faded and left the nest 

 exposed at the ver\- time that the youngsters needed the most protection. 



Much as thev resent the company of humans near their homes, they made 

 no objection to the strawberry basket that was secured under their nest, to keep 

 it from ti]j])ing sidewise and dumping its load on the bare earth; neither did they 



