THE FLICKER. • 37 



the excavation will have the same slant. When the tree is 

 leaning the entrance will be made on the under side, otherwise 

 the rain would enter and fill the excavation. Once he found a 

 nest in the horizontal branch of a tree not more than two feet 

 from the main stem. The hole was bored in the side of the 

 branch and carried at right angles toward the tree bole. The 

 next year the .same entrance was used, but the burrow dug out 

 of the oppo.site side, the old cavit}- not being used at all. 

 Natural cavities are sometimes cho.sen and the entrance en- 

 larged. Once .such a nest came to grief during a heav\' rain, 

 when it filled with water, ruining the eggs. As to distance 

 from ground, he .says it would be impossible to state any usual 

 or preferred height, for there are none. Mr. Cha.se once 

 found a nest in a willow post with entrance but twenty-two 

 inches above the ground, and extending down until level with 

 the surface. The height probably varies almost if not quite 

 as much in one .section as the other, but apparentl}' averaging 

 higher in the North and vSouth Atlantic than in the Central 

 Western States from data at hand : 



EXCAVATION. 



House limiting begins shortly after the. female has chosen 

 her mate. The female leads, a.ssiduou.sly seconded by her 

 partner, in a tour of inspection of all available sites, which 

 often furnishes occupation for days. The following jottings 

 from my note book for '9() are pertinent: April 15th, *> 

 A. M. — A female flew to old .swamp willow, clo.se to creek, 

 and ran up main stem, examining some old cavities on the 

 way; male arrived a minute later and went through the same 

 performance, the female retiring meanwhile ; both silent. At 

 U:oO the female flew directly to the top of the hollow .stub, 

 male followed directly after, uttering his love or .scythe-whet- 

 ting .song upon alighting, in which the female occasionally 

 joined, but .soon left. At 10 o'clock the pair returned, singing 

 common .song on the top, apparently decided upon exact spot. 

 Another pair went through the same ceremony on a tree fur- 

 ther up the creek at 1 ;-"50 P. M. April 21 st. three individuals 



