The Wilson Bulletin— No. 46. 15 



A DOUBLE NEST OK RED-EYED VIREO. 



LYNDS JONES. 



The accompanying illustration represents a nest of the Red- 

 €yed Vireo, taken more than a dozen years ago at my old 

 home in Iowa. As shown in the illustration, there were two 

 eggs in one side and one in the other. When the nest was 

 found the mother bird was sitting upon the two egg side, but 

 there were evidences showing that she had also sat upon the 

 one egg side. To all appearances the two nests are exactly 

 alike, and each is practically complete, only a small amount 

 of the material being common lo both nests. It could rarely 

 happen that a main branch would have two twigs growing 

 from it on opposite sides at almost the same level, and at prac- 

 tically the same angle. It is hardly conceivable that two fe- 

 males or two pairs of birds could have built these nests. At 

 any rate, tin re was no evidence of it, for only one pair of birds 

 was to be found in the vicinity. Neither is it likel}^ that the 

 male built one nest while the female built the other. The evi- 

 dence is strongly in favor of the same architect for both nests. 

 It looks like a case of indecision between Iwo equally favora- 

 ble nesting sites. We are not surprised at evidences of inde- 

 cision in the Long-billed Marsh Wren — if that is indecision 

 rather than a method of working off superfluous energy — but 

 the Vireos have noi been supposed to do such things. 



Till' CLOCK FACTORY. 



I'.S'rilHR CKAIGiAIILK. 



Our little party was eager with expectancy, for it stood on 

 the edge of a pii;e grove from which proceeded no small com- 

 motion. It was eleven o'clock in the morning and the colony 

 was jttst retiring for the day. We were nearer now, and 

 could see they were lilack-crowned Night Herons (^Nycticorax 

 nydicorax nccvins). Some parent birds sat silently at the 

 top of the dead pines, while some were feeding the young. 

 The larger trees contained three and four nests. Three or 



