204 NIDIFICATION OF WINTER WHEN 



State, attached tt) the lower part vi a rock. It ditiered from the 

 one just described, hi l)eino- smaller, but was otherwise similar. 



DeKay* tells us that his collector, a Mr. Wood, found the spe- 

 cies breeding in great numbers near Lake Oneida, New York, in 

 July, and that the number of eggs was from ten to twelve. 



A nest with eggs was taken in Eastern Maine by Mr. W. F. 

 Hall, who found it built in a deserted loof-hut, amonsf the tir- 

 leaves and mosses in a crevice between the loo-s. The structure 

 " was large and bulky, composed externally of mosses, and lined 

 with feathers and the fur of hedge-hogs. The shape was that of 

 a pouch, the entrance being neatly framed with sticks, and the 

 walls very strong, thick, and firmly comparted." Its framework 

 had been made of green hemlock, the odour of which was very 

 ao-reeable. 



On July 23rd, Mr. H. D. Minot discovei-ed a nest in the White 

 Mountains, New Hampshire. It was in a moss-covered stump, 

 about a foot high, standing in a dark, swampy forest filled with 

 tangled piles of fallen trees and branches. The entrance to the 

 nest was less than an inch in diameter, and it was covered with an 

 overhanging bit of moss which the l)ird pushed upward when 

 entering. Within, it was thickly lined with feathers of the 

 Ruffed Grouse. The eggs, five in number, were " pure crystal- 

 white, thinly and minutely specked with bright reddish-brown, 

 and averaged about .70 x .50 of an inch in dimensions." 



In 1878 three nests were found by Mr. James Bradbury of 

 Maine. Two of these were under fallen trees, at the roots, and 

 the remaining one was sunk into the thick moss which enveloped 

 another prostrate trunk. 



From the previous notes we see that the bird, when about to 

 breed, is ready to adapt itself to circumstances, and consequently 

 the position and form of the nest may vary f i-om a '" protuberance" 

 on a tree-trunk to a snug little structure stowed away in some 

 retired and suitable crevice. It is formed of moss with a lining 

 of warm material, such as feathers. The eggs are white, spotted, 

 chiefly near the larger end, with reddish-brown. The generic 



'Natural History of New York : Birds ; p. 57. 



