ORNITHOLOGICAL DISCOVERIES 233 



climbed with most amazing speed. The little parrots gazed 

 silently down at him with twisting necks and with longing- 

 last looks at the luscious meal they must now forsake, they 

 flew screaming away. 



I placed my hand against a small sapling to stead}' 

 myself, while watching further developments, and carelessly 

 gave it a little shake. The flash of a tiny pair of wings al- 

 most in my face was the result, and the view of a little brown 

 bird as it rapidly disappeared into the undergrowth. I 

 looked at the sapling and saw a small bundle of leaves rest- 

 ing upon a small branch about four feet from the ground. 

 It had passed unnoticed in tlie excitement of watching the 

 parrots and the monkey. Then from the bushes came a few 

 cheerful notes from the most wonderful musical instrument 

 of all, the throat of the quadrille-bird and I felt that I really 

 had discovered something worth while. 



As my hiding place was too close to the nest, I chose 

 another position and sat down to await what would happen. 

 From behind a friendly screening bush the nest looked like a 

 leafy vase held by a twist of the funnel-shaped neck over a 

 supporting branch. The wily little bird was fully two hours 

 in making up its mind to enter its curious home, but it could 

 be seen dodging in and out among the bushes close by, al- 

 ways too wary to take any chances while the enemy was 

 about. It did not scold as they usually do, but every few 

 minutes burst into song as if thus to find a vent for its in- 

 creasing excitement. Finally, about noon, when a heavy 

 shower of rain commenced, it entered to protect the eggs 

 from a wetting. 



The nest was composed almost entireh^ of leaf skele- 

 tons bound tightly together with fine fibres and a few blades 

 of coarse grass. The entrance passage was quite large and 

 opened ujDon the small inner cavity near the top. The cavity 

 in which the eggs lay, was lined with several big feathers 

 of the large Guiana great tinamou and the Guiana partridge. 



