Sherman — Sign of Northern Flicker. 141 



morning. The first exact data was obtained May 20, 1908, 

 when the sixth egg was laid at five o'clock and forty-eight 

 minutes. It was five o'clock and eighteen minutes on May 22 

 of this year when the sixth egg of the new series was laid, and 

 the seventh was on the following morning at five o'clock and 

 forty-nine minutes. The marking of this seventh egg had Ijeen 

 ])ostponed until fcnu' o'clock in the afternoon when a little sur- 

 prise was in store. Beside it lay the eighth egg left there some- 

 time between the hours of eleven and four o'clock. It made 

 the identification of the seventh egg impossible so the two were 

 marked as twins. The weight of one of these eggs was a 

 trifle in excess of that of any of the others, and the weight of 

 the other twin was above the average. Before six o'clock the 

 next morning the ninth egg of the new series — the eleventh 

 one of all — had been deposited. At this juncture a message 

 summoned me to a distant state. My absence extended over 

 the greater part of the time of incubation, Avhich probably did 

 not differ much in history from that of the nests of previous 

 years from which 1 shall describe the nest activities of this 

 period. I am greatly indebted to a friend, who in my absence 

 visited the barn every evening and ascertained that incubation 

 was performed by the male bird during all of the nights, while 

 the female roosted in the west box every night exce])t three. 



By day the duties of incubation seem to be shared about 

 equally between the two birds, who are close sitters, the eggs 

 seldom being found alone. Of the length of the sittings no 

 adecjuate record has been kept, but those lasting from one hour 

 and a half to two hours have been noted. The bird that is 

 returning to the nest announces its approach by a soft "wick- 

 ah-wick" note, which the sitter answers as a rule, and at once 

 takes its departure, flying past the mate that is hanging to the 

 outside of the liole. It is contrary to Flicker etiquette for both 

 of the pair to occupy the nest at the same time, and never but 

 once have I seen one enter the hole until its mate had left. 

 Then it was the male, who in his headlong haste, blundered in 

 while the mother was feeding the vonug, and hurried her de- 



