232 LAND BIRDS 
striped plumage that at first I saw nothing. They were 
too old to be fooled into opening their bills for food, but. 
crouched flat in fear, only their beady eyes telling me 
they were alive. As I put down my 
hand to take one, the four popped out 
of the nest with one accord so swiftly 
that I could not see what hap- 
pened. Then ensued a search, 
long and painstaking, before I 
found even one. During’ all 
this time the 
P excited father 
A 
and mother were fol- 
: >, SS lowing _-me just over- 
VE Wz head in the lowest 
I Whee ry Ih LP, / cc ” 
a7 ih ,/ + /~ branches, the “seep, seep 
if i) 4 i A ‘ 
} 
a i 
| MAY Ky, ¥ j 
| i ! yee ' seeming to my _ strained 
WA AN - . . . 
=e imagination like ‘“ Don’t, 
don’t,’ but not once had 
a), they come to the ground. 
| Pe The instant I espied the 
54. youngster sitting placidly 
567 c. THuRBER JuNco. on the ground, they seemed 
“ They protested with plaintive intuitively to know it. 
calls.”? 
With redoubled cries they 
flew down to him, evidently coaxing him to make 
some effort to escape. And he did try, but I had never 
photographed a Junco baby and this chance was too — 
good to lose, so I caught him. Soon after I found 
two of the others. Once caught, they seemed to lose 
