Robin and Cuckoo's Egg. 135 



there are similar evidences by other observers, show- 

 ing the disposition above mentioned." '•' 



" That year," writes Mr. W. J. C. Miller, late Regis- 

 trar to the General Medical Council, " it happened 

 that a pair of robins had built a nest in a box in our 

 garden, and had there laid two eggs. But on looking 

 in one morning, I saw a similar egg, though a little 

 bit larger, lying close beside the other two. Up to 

 that time, I had only seen a cuckoo's egg when laid 

 beside the ' eggs of heavenly blue ' of the hedge- 

 sparrow, where it was clearly to be recognised. And 

 the hole in the box was much too small for a cuckoo 

 ever to get through. This, however, was a cuckoo's 

 egg, which must have been brought and placed there 

 by the cuckoo's beak. It would have been interesting 

 to note the hatching of the young cuckoo, and watch 

 its behaviour towards its nest mates ; but whether 

 the robins had ever been deceived or not I cannot 

 say ; anyhow they forsook this nest and went off and 

 built and reared their brood in another box." f 



In this case, it may be inferred that the cuckoo, 

 which could manage to introduce an egg here could 

 not manage to take one out, and so the little robins 

 declined to have the extra egg and deserted the nest 

 — another instance of cuckoo's egg rejected by a 

 small bird. 



* Trans. Norfolk and Nortvich Nat. His. Soc, p. 369. 

 "Y Essays and Nature Studies, p. 26. 



