234 Brewster, A Brood of You?tg Flickers. \_V^ 



also suggested the strokes of a piston. They were always 

 accompanied by a marked, equally rapid, and apparently corres- 

 ponding twitching of the tail and hinder parts of the body, and a 

 slighter movement of the wings. 



As already stated, the contact of the bills lasted from one 

 second to a second and a half. At its termination the parent 

 would suddenly resume an erect position and look keenly around, 

 at the same time opening and shutting his bill, running out his 

 tongue, and working the upper portion of the throat slightly. 

 This action puzzled me at first. It looked as if the bird were 

 first tasting and afterwards swallowing something which had 

 been obtained from the mouth of the young. After watching 

 the performance many times I came to the conclusion that 

 it was for the purpose of regaining small particles of food 

 which, failing to lodge in the throat of the young, had adhered to 

 the outside of the parent's bill. On one occasion I distinctly 

 saw the old bird, while thus tasting, drop or rub off something 

 from the tip of the bill, and then bending forwards pick it up 

 from the top of the stump and swallow it. The object looked 

 like a large black ant. 



If interrupted during the pumping process, as the bird occa- 

 sionally was, by some motion or noise that I made, it would often 

 feed the same young twice or even thrice in succession, but this 

 never happened when the first period of contact was of normal 

 length. 



After resting and tasting for a moment, the parent would 

 again bend forward and for a brief space regard the circle of gap- 

 ing mouths attentively, evidently hesitating which to take next. 

 The choice made, the operation just described would be exactly 

 repeated. Four young were usually fed at each visit, but some- 

 times only three, and once but one. When the number was 

 less than four, I think the bird took some alarm and starting oft' 

 thought it not worth while to return. In no instance were more 

 than four young fed. Whether or no the fifth was served first at 

 the next visit, I had no means of determining. 



The time which the old bird spent at the nest rarely exceeded 

 half a minute. On leaving it he always flew straight oft' over the 

 open fields to a distance of at least a quarter of a mile, beyond 

 which I lost sisrht of him behind some trees, His return was 



