

THE EARLY LIFE OF THE YOUNG 

 CUCKOO. 



' I HE Cuckoo has always been the subject of 

 considerable controversy and debate, and 

 with all our wonderful strides in the Scientific 

 world we have as yet failed to solve many of the 

 mysteries which surround its life and habits. 



With all our years of careful and patient obser- 

 vation we have not yet fathomed the mystery of 

 why the Cuckoo does not build a nest of its own, 

 and as to how many ea^gs one female lays during a 

 season True, we have by this time exploded the 

 altogether erroneous statement that the bird lays 

 its eggs in the nest of the species with which it had 

 decided to entrust its offspring, as it is now proved 

 beyond a doubt that the bird does not lay the egg 

 in the nest nor does it carry the egg in its claws, 

 but first lays the egg on the ground and carries it 

 to the selected nest in its mouth. 



