1 88 Kenxard and McKechnie, Brozvn Creeper. [ a^ 



Whatever our success later in finding and tracing them to their 

 nests, we owe to our method of first locating them by ear, listen- 

 ing for those faint call notes that they utter so constantly while 

 feeding, and which are so singularly like those of the Golden- 

 crowned Kinglet ; and then when once seen, following them 

 wherever they may lead, through swamps and thickets, never 

 losing sight of them for a moment, if possible. 



May 3, at about 3:30 p. m., after a half hour's search, these 

 birds were again located near where they had been seen before, 

 and after about an hour's watching and wading back and forth 

 through the swamp, which was two to three feet deep with water, 

 one of the birds was seen to go behind a piece of loose bark about 

 ten feet up, on an old dead maple stub. (Plate X, Fig. 2.) 

 Behind this bark was a typical nest, evidently an old one, but 

 from its remarkably good state of repair, undoubtedly last year's. 



Needless to say, upon this discovery, efforts at finding this year's 

 nest were redoubled, and as the birds had been lost sight of 

 while the oiu ..est was being inspected, a systematic search of that 

 part of the swamp was begun, till finally at about 6:15 p. m. a 

 bunch of sticks was discovered protruding beneath the bottom of 

 a piece of bark about four and one-half feet up. on the stub of a 

 dead fifteen-inch white pine. 



This proved to be the much sought for nest ; not quite finished 

 as to superstructure and lining, and also apparently ready to fall 

 into the water on the slightest provocation. (Plate XI, Fig. 1.) 

 So sticks were stuck beneath it into the cracks of the tree as a 

 support ; these, however, proved later to have been unnecessary, 

 as the nest "was firmly secured to the trunk of the tree by cob- 

 webs, plant down, etc., with which the rather bulky foundation 

 was held together. 



The birds had not been seen since the discovery of the old nest 

 about an hour and a half before. 



On May 6, this nest seemed to be about completed. The sides 

 or points at each side of the nest, which Mr. Brewster calls ' horns,' 

 had been built up and made more compact, and the hollow thus 

 formed between these horns and the trunk and the bark of the 

 tree had been lined and made into a beautiful soft deep cup. 

 The Creepers were calling to each other and feeding, as usual, 



