on the nesting of a Bed-breasted Nuthatch. 281


shire forests where I had first become acquainted with this species.

These little birds were among my most regular visitors and seemed

to be nearly as numerous as the Chickadees. They preferred hemp

seeds and chopped nuts at the shelf and seemed especially fond of

the suet. They also drank the water frequently, and in general

appeared to be so much at home that I often thought how nice it

would be if they would stay to nest, instead of leaving for the north

in the spring. However, I hardly expected that my wish would

come true, because I knew that they were birds of the Canadian

zone, and that there were but few records of the species having bred

in eastern Massachusetts.


Therefore I was delighted when, on April 10th, I noticed a

female Red-breast carrying nesting material into one of my bird-

boxes. This is a Berlepsch box, size No. 2, made by the Audubon

Bird House Co., of Meriden, N.H. The entrance hole is 1^ in. in

diameter, and the box, which is made of yellow birch, is placed in a

white birch tree about 7 ft. from the ground. It was put up in the

hope of attracting Chickadees.


I did not see the male Nuthatch at work until April 16th,.

when I observed him carrying shreds of bark which he pulled from

the trunks and limbs of red cedars (Juniperus virginiana) growing

near by. Examination of the box after the nesting season showed

that the nest was composed exclusively of this material, the box being

filled to within an inch or two of the level of the entrance hole. The

male usually left his load at the hole without entering, and I suppose

that the material was put in place by the female inside.


On April 23rd, on my return home after a few days’ absence,

I saw the male fly to the box and feed the female, who stuck her head

out of the hole. I supposed that the incubating period had com¬

menced, but on April 27th I saw more nesting material being carried,

this time by the female. One of the photographs was taken with

the idea of showing the male in the act of feeding the female, but

unfortunately her head shows only indistinctly in the hole, while the

male moved his* head slightly so that the bill is somewhat blurred. I

noticed this feeding process quite often during the nesting period, and

observed that frequently the female would fly out of the box as soon

as she had received the food her mate had brought.



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