The Birds’ Calendar 
building is much larger than one might sup- 
pose, owing to the peculiarities in architecture, 
the difference of the supplies afforded in differ- 
ent localities, and probably, too, something 
must be allowed for their individual tastes. 
The following variety is to be found in the 
nests of our own region: grasses, leaves, weeds, 
fibrous roots, sticks, twigs, outer bark of grape- 
vine, cedar-bark, fine fir branches, cranberry 
fibre, dry plants of various kinds, pine needles, 
rushes, sedges, mosses, lichens, seaweed, hay, 
wool, tow, cottony substance of fern stems, 
straw, horse-hair, feathers (sometimes of the 
bird itself), down of thistle and other seeds, 
fine hair of various animals, silky vegetable 
fibre, willow-down, wool of cotton-grass, cater- 
pillar’s silk, pieces of the nests of hornets and 
spiders, hogs’ bristles, strings of silkweed-flax, 
artificial thread, sewing -silk, strips of paper, 
snake-skins, mud, turf, pebbles, clam and oys- 
ter shells (in the case of the kill-deer plover), 
and in several species the saliva of the bird, to 
serve as glue for binding the parts together. 
A bird is supposed to have little interest 
in its nest, apart from the eggs or the young 
actually contained therein. But I have heard 
of a curious instance of sentiment (quite like- 
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