Taming Wild Birds without a Cage 237 



down on the farther side of the nest, so that only her little tail 

 was visible over its rim. Any one prone to discover protective 

 mimicry in such cases would find a striking example of it in 

 this attitude, 

 the little gray 

 tail of the bird 

 simulatingso 

 well one of the 

 twigs which 

 helped to sup- 

 port the gray 

 wall of the nest. 

 It was rather 

 the case of an 

 alert animal ly- 

 ing still or in 

 hiding until a 

 present danger 

 might be past. 

 If you kept your 

 position long 

 enough, the bird 

 would drop to 

 the ground, 

 where joined by 

 her mate both 

 would hop 

 about in the 



grass chipping nervously, but keeping well out of sight. On 

 approaching one of the nests still later when there were young, 

 the female was usually overtaken in the act of brooding. At 

 such times it was easy to walk slowly to the nest and place your 

 hand close to the brooding bird. But before allowing you actu- 

 ally to touch her, she would flit to the grass, and with spread 

 wings and tail practice that "art of feigning" as it is usually 

 called, although it is not an art or anything learned or practised 

 for the occasion, but an inherited instinct, the end and advantage 



Fig. 144. Female Chestnut-sided Warbler inspecting her 

 young after having served food. 



