28 Mr. T. M. Savage English on 



and ten to twenty feet from the ground, decays rapidly 

 inside, so that it becomes just a hard outer shell perhaps 

 half an inch thick, enclosing what is little more than powder 

 held together by a loose network of fibres and capped by the 

 more lasting remains of the " crown '' of the palm — an ideal 

 situation for a woodpecker's nest, but impossible to examine 

 except after complete destruction. The same hole seems to 

 be used year after year if the palm-stem lasts, and in early 

 August the young can generally be seen blocking the 

 entrance with their heads, and heard, often with not more 

 than two minutes' intervals, loudly welcoming the return of 

 a parent with food. 



Mimus orpheus in Grand Cayman builds an open nest of 

 small sticks rather roughly put together and lined with 

 grass, palm-fibre, and similar material, in a bush or tree at 

 any height from about three to twenty or more feet above 

 the ground. Three eggs are usually laid, and there can be 

 little doubt that the heat of the sun assists in their hatching, 

 seeing that during sunny weather the bird does not seem 

 to sit regularly, if at all, and that the young more often 

 than not seem to be hatched at intervals of a day, just as 

 the eggs were laid. The period of incubation is eleven to 

 twelve days, and the usual nesting season is from January 

 to June, though the majority of nests seem to be made in 

 April. Mimus orpheus will not allow any large bird to come 

 within range of its nest unchallenged. One nesting near 

 the beach would attack any Frigate-bird flying at all low 

 overhead, and keep up the chase until well out to sea. 

 This bird is locally called " Nightingale," and does occa- 

 sionally sing at night, but most of the local accounts of the 

 nocturnal music of "Nightingales" seem to have originated 

 in the books (from England), by means of which the Cayman 

 school-children are taught to read. Its song is very like 

 that of Tardus musicus. 



Vireosylva caymanensis is frequent in the " bush," and is 

 very probably the real singer of the song attributed to 

 Melopyrrha taylori. The two birds are often noticed not 

 far apart. A nest was found, on the 27th of May, 1913, 



