''"',., i ; xx | Bbbotold, i Study oj tfu Hon ■ Finch 51 



« hibiting many easily recognizable nuptial characters all th< i 

 indication of the awakening "I the n< ting in itinct are ;ii once i 

 lenced if cold weather lupervene. Cold weather has ;< positive 

 deterrent effect on egg laying, a facl clearly i tablished \>y (Ik- 

 writer's records. On the other hand pairs of House Pinches, un 

 que i i'>i i.i l.l y mated, have been ob lerved looking for eligible nesting 

 it< in i erj month of 'Ik- year, nol excepting Mi<- period from 

 September to February. The earlit I active nesl building noted 

 by the writer was on January 30, and the latest Julj 23; while 

 pair have been noticed gathering material as late as December 

 22, the e attempt have been cla sed, however, by the writer us 

 due to :i fleeting spell of warm weather. 



The birds grow very tame if the nest be closely a ociated with 

 man and hi doing they eem to be bothered in no way by ilam- 

 ming of doors or by pa i r in ;"i<l <»ui of a door close to ;t n< | 

 The nest i •■! shallow cup-shaped affair, roughly about lour to five 

 inches in diameter, which varies, however, according to the space 

 in which it is built, and ha a depth within its cupping of from 

 two to two and ••' half inche II built in ;i box if. never complete ly 

 fill; tlx- whole of the floor space unlet the box be very small 

 otherwi e tli<- ne I will be of the usual diameter, and placed, in 

 the majority of cases, in the end of the box farthest away from the 

 light. The material u ed in nesl building vary according to loca- 

 tion: one found in the bui iness <li itrict wa made ent irely of dried 

 fr< lil cut gras , evidently gathered from the lawns surrounding 

 the municipal buildings, and had a lining of cotton batting. An- 

 other ne I lion i the business di Lrict was made of rootlet i, cow hair, 

 and also lined with cot ton bal ting. 



■ found in the outskirt of the citj have the outer portion 

 made of traw, hair, string, small twigs, weed branches, gra and 

 rootlets, and hav< as a lining ome good non-conductor of heat, 

 i i r cotton wool or string. One nest wa built over ;i large mass of 

 wool which eemed to have attracted om< \ ariety of fly, which later 

 had lepo Ited it egg in the wool, producing maggots that <li<l not 

 bother, so far a one could determine, the young finches growing 

 e them. 

 One can i i<<<lii<- and encourage the nest building by putting 

 fim- trav o] in the ne ting box, arranging the material 



