162 BIRD LIFE IN WILD WALES 



convenient and grassy platform, watched the Jack- 

 daws feeding their young for some time. One pair 

 had their nest in a fissure just above me, and the 

 birds ventured into it several times whilst I was there, 

 though with an ordinary walking-stick I could have 

 touched them on every occasion. Going home by 

 the line I saw the cock Butcher Birds perched on the 

 telegraph wires, as is their custom, and visited the 

 Sandpiper's nest which had two eggs the day before 

 yesterday. It now only contains three, so it would 

 seem that occasionally this species only lays three 

 eggs, for Sandpipers certainly lay every day. 



In the afternoon visited the Sparrow-hawk's nest 

 in the wood above the G. rocks. This nest now con- 

 tains five eggs. Much down was scattered about it — 

 a characteristic of all Sparrow-hawk's nests, though 

 much more obvious in some than in others. The 

 female was "sitting," and did not budge until I had 

 given the tree a few good raps with my stick, when 

 she left, but kept close at hand, uttering from time to 

 time a tremulous scream. I watched her back to the 

 nest, and she was only a fraction over six minutes 

 away. Soon after the male came gliding through the 

 larches with a small bird in his talons, which he 

 deposited by the side of his " sitting " mate. I took 

 the trouble to ascertain what this small bird was, and 

 it turned out to be a Tree Pipit. The farmer here 

 told me that as some friends and himself were 

 standing in his rickyard a day or two ago a Hawk 

 (certainly one of this pair) snatched a half-grown 

 chicken from under their very feet, but dropped it 

 before going far. Returning home, I ascended the 



