The Early Life of the Young Cuckoo. 5 



servations are the most practical that I have as yet 

 seen, and too much prominence cannot be given to 

 the fact that Mr. Craig has paid particular attention 

 to the curious life-history of this interesting harb- 

 inger of Summer, and the opinions at which he has 

 arrived are the result of several years' hard work 

 in Field Ornithology. 



I have entitled these notes " The Early Life of 

 the Young Cuckoo," and do not therefore propose 

 to enlarge on the life and habits of the adult bird, 

 but to proceed to describe a most interesting series 

 of experiences and experiments with some young 

 Cuckoos which Mr. Craig successfully carried out 

 during the Summer of 1899. 



Up to the date of Mr. Craig's valuable observa- 

 tions considerable doubt existed as to how the 

 young Cuckoo ejected its foster-brothers and 

 sisters or the eggs out of the nest in which it hap- 

 pened to be placed. Many theories were ex- 

 pounded, but it seemed that, although so many were 

 ready to put their theories and experiences into 

 print, very few indeed had actually witnessed the 

 occurrence. We had had drawings illustrating the 

 young Cuckoo in the act of ejection, but these 



B 



