Vireos Awake and Asleep 



105 



Quite often you would hear a huic! huic! which always aroused 

 the young, who would tsip! back in earnest. While the mother was 

 again coming slowly towards the nest with a bee in her mouth, 

 another bee happened to cross her path. She darted after it, 

 but missed her aim. Then, disposing of the first insect, she 



showing the depth to which food is inserted in the throat. Photographed from an ele- 

 vated tent with white screen at back, illustrated in Fig. 42. 



watched her young intently for a moment, stooped, picked up 

 a small white package, and hurried away. 



At one o'clock the old birds took a midday rest, and it was 

 full twenty minutes before that reassuring piort! piort! was 

 heard. Then as, step by step, the mother came nearer the 

 magnet, the drawing power of which was irresistible, her livelier 

 huic! huic! awoke the young, who started and replied swit! 

 swit! Thereupon the old bird quickly hopped along the branch, 

 straddled the fork, and tucked a large grasshopper into one o" 



