18 



TRAVELS ABOUT HOME 



and sang from five to seven times before searching for 

 food ; but, in spite of this handicap, he fed the young as of- 

 ten as the female, both making twenty visits. The female, 

 unaided, thus fed the young at the rate of about once in 

 eight minutes but when both sexes were at work, the rate 

 was increased to once every six and a half minutes. 



Inspection After Feeding 



There was a more or less regular alternation of sexes in 

 the visits to the nest but, in three instances, both the male 

 and female visited the nest twice in succession. On only two 

 occasions did the parents meet at the nest ; once they came 

 together when the male fed first and flew away, and once the 

 female came just as the male was leaving. In each case he 

 greeted her with a bit of song as he left, and this was at 



