FIRST APPEARANCES OF BIRDS. INSECTS, ETC. 131 



tree opposite the nesting hole and had a long conversation, 

 the young meanwhile " buzzing." 



At 11.5 the hen came, but fled at the noise of the shutter ; 

 she, however, returned at 11.10, but did not seem to bring any 

 food. At 1 1 .45 she came into the nesting tree and stayed some 

 time at the back. The cock meanwhile was calling " quo- 

 quo-quo-quo-quo-quo-quoae qweek qweek qweek qweek," 

 and at 12 he went away, neither bird had returned at 

 1 o'clock, and the cock had not fed the young since my arrival. 



I then left for lunch. 



At 1 .55 I returned and at 1 .58 one of the parents w r as back, 

 making a noise. 



At 2.5 the hen came to the nest ; she must have come 

 along the ground, since she ran up the tree and went straight 

 in without a pause. At 2.9 she came out very quickly. The 

 whole interval that she was inside the young kept up a grating 

 noise. At. 2.45 the cock came to the tree opposite the nest 

 and gave a loud call of " quo-quo-quo-quo-quo-quo-quo " 

 and presently repeated it more quietly. 



He seemed in no hurry to go to the nest, and at 3.20 was still 

 on the same perch uttering his call every two or three minutes, 

 although during the time he was there I only heard the hen 

 once at a distance. For a position of rest I noticed the cock 

 liked to sit on a branch longitudinally, or else across a fork with 

 his feet grasping one branch and his tail resting on the other. 



At 3.40 the hen was still away, and had up to that time only 

 fed the young twice or three times, if she came whilst I was 

 at lunch. 



At 3.55 the hen and at 4.5 the hen came to the nest ; at 

 4.25 the hen again came, and about one minute sufficed to 

 feed the family. I then left the nest. 



June 24th I went to the nest at 6.45 a.m. and the hen started 

 calling almost immediately. At 7 she sat in a tree close at 

 hand and made her toilet ; at 7.20 she fed the young with her 

 head in the entrance hole ; at 7.25 she came back to the nest 

 and bolted straight in, after a hurried glance round, and stayed 

 for five minutes, when she came out and left the nest. 



