400 LAND BIRDS 
glasses, and while it was impossible to see how the weay- 
ing was done on account of the thick foliage, it was easy 
to ascertain that the male bird was the architect. Only 
once did the female drop down to the nest, and then she 
remained so long as to make it seem certain an egg was 
laid. However, the next day she was flying away over 
the valley with apparently no thought of family cares, 
and was not observed near the nest tree again until the 
third day after. Two days later sitting began. In this 
the male shared to a limited extent only. At least he 
remained at the nest, but whether or not he actually 
brooded the eggs I do not know, because a fear of caus- 
ing the birds to desert prevented a watch at close range. 
On the fourteenth day the male was observed visiting 
the nest very frequently, and an examination revealed two 
pinkish bits of bird life, naked except for a sprinkling of 
thin gray down on top of heads and shoulders. ‘There was 
nothing in their appearance to suggest the elegant form 
of their parents, and they might as well have been young 
sparrows. From that time on we obtained an intimate 
knowledge of their development by keeping watch under 
the tree. The intervals of feeding varied with the time 
of day. From four to six A.M. the shortest wait was five 
minutes and the longest seventeen. During the day as 
long as one hour sometimes intervened between the meals. 
Insects and berries were swallowed by the adults, who 
fed the young by regurgitation. In the case of the wax- 
wings and Phainopeplas the process of regurgitation 
lacks the usual violent pumping motion, but consists of a 
quick eructation of the food from the throat into the bill. 
