ANIMAL LIFE-HISTORIES 



Fig. gyS.^Nest of Wood-Pigeon (Colutn 



itself to us by its attachment to a certain breeding-place, returning 

 in many cases year by year to build its nest in one particular 



spot." A much neater 

 nest is constructed in a 

 hedge or bush by the 

 Common Thrush (Tur- 

 dus musicus, fig. 977), 

 grass being the chief 

 building material, while 

 mud is used as a cement. 

 An inner layer of finer 

 material is added, and 

 the whole is completed 

 by a lining of cow-dung, 

 decayed wood, or mud. 

 We have next to consider nests made of sticks or fibres, and 

 placed in trees or other precarious situations, often in such a way 



as to necessitate very con- 

 siderable constructive skill. 

 One of the least elaborate 

 is the loose stick-nest of the 

 Wood - Pigeon ( Columba 

 palumbus, fig. 978), through 

 the crevices in which the 

 two eggs can easily be seen 

 from below. Contrary to 

 the usual rule these are 

 white in colour, and it has 

 been suggested that they 

 are thus rendered less con- 

 spicuous when seen from 

 below against the bright 

 sky. 



Much more elegant are 

 the deep woven nests of the 



Fig. 979. Nest of Great Reed Warbler (Acrocephalus Reed Warbler (A.CTOCphaluS 



arundinaceus] * r J 



streperus) and Great Reed 



Warbler (A. arundinaceus, fig. 979), constructed of vegetable fibre, 

 while moss, wool, feathers, and hair serve as materials for lining. 

 It will be seen from the illustration how cleverly the stems of 



