84 



AMERICAN ORNITHOLOGY. 



Photo ty Dr. J. B. Pardoe. 



deserted Flicker's nest that suits 

 their fancy. If it happens that the 

 hole they choose has already been 

 appropriated by a pair of Flickers, 

 it makes no difference, the latter 

 must leave, if not willingly then by 

 force. It sometimes happens that 



hollow trees are scarce in their 

 neighborhood. When this occurs 

 they use the next best place that 

 they can find. Their nests have 

 been found in a sand bank, in an old 

 Kingfisher's hole, in crevices in 

 cliffs, and several times in pigeon 

 houses about barns. Wherever the 

 nest is placed the result is the same, 

 the parent birds must work diligent- 

 ly from morning till night to satisfy 

 the hunger of their little ones. Once 

 in a while in order to get a little 

 respite from the task of catching 

 grasshoppers one of the old birds will 

 bring them a small bird which will 

 stay their appetite for a time. 



As soon as the young are able to 

 tly they become a very noisy lot. 

 They will make short excursions 

 from the tree and try to catch grass- 

 hoppers for themselves. They seem 

 much elated if successful and return 

 to their home uttering a loud mirth- 

 ful cackle of "gill-ee, gill-ee," this 

 repeated perhaps a dozen times. 

 Their flight is peculiar and will al- 

 ways identify them. They fly with 

 a succession of rapid wing beats, 

 followed by a short sail of twenty 

 or thirty feet. I am glad to see 

 that the farmers are beginning to 

 distinguish between their friends 

 and enemies among the hawks, and 

 no longer kill those that do more 

 tiood than harm. 



