64 BIRDS OF THE PLAINS 



Draccena leaf run longitudinally. In leaves of different 

 texture the punctures take other shapes. Having thus 

 prepared the leaf, she disappeared for a little and 

 returned with a strand of cobweb. One end of this she 

 wound round the narrow part of the leaf that separated 

 one of the punctures from the edge ; having done this, 

 she carried the loose end of the strand across the under 

 surface of the leaf to a puncture on the opposite side, 

 where she attached it to the leaf and thus drew the 

 edges a little way together. She then proceeded to 

 connect most of the other punctures with those opposite 

 to them, so that the leaf took the form of a tunnel con- 

 verging to a point. The under surface of the leaf formed 

 the roof and sides of the tunnel or arch. There was no 

 floor to this, since the edges of the leaf did not meet 

 below, the gap between them being bridged by strands 

 of cobweb. This was a full day's work for the little 

 bird, and more than sufficient to disqualify her for 

 membership in any trade union. 



She next went on to line with cotton this cul-de-sac 

 which she had made in the leaf. She, of course, com- 

 menced by filling the tip, and the weight of the lining 

 soon caused the hitherto horizontal leaf to hang down- 

 wards, so that it eventually became almost vertical, with 

 the tip pointing towards the ground. When lining the 

 nest the bird made a number of punctures in the leaf, 

 through which she poked the lining with her beak, the 

 object of this being to keep the lining in situ. It was 

 Mr. Pinto who first called my attention to these punc- 

 tures in the body of the leaf. He informed me that he 

 had never seen a tailor-bird's nest in which the lining 



