90 ICTERID^E. 



birds had paid a great deal of attention to the nest, I knew the Bay- 

 wings would not allow them to lay in it. 



The ten eggs in the nest were all unmistakably Bay-wing's eggs ; 

 and having observed before that several females do occasionally lay 

 together, I concluded that in this case two females had laid in the nest, 

 though I had only seen two birds male and female. After taking the 

 ten eggs the Bay-wings still remained, and in a very short time they 

 appeared to be laying again. When I had reason to think that the full 

 complement was laid, 1 visited the nest and found five eggs in it ; these 

 I also took, and concluded that the second female had probably gone 

 away, after having been deprived of her first clutch. During all this 

 time the Screaming Cow-birds remained in the neighbourhood and 

 occasionally visited the tree ; but to my very great surprise the Bay- 

 wings still stubbornly remained, and by-and-by I found that they were 

 going to lay again the fourth time ! When I next visited the nest 

 there were two eggs in it ; I left them and returned three days later, 

 expecting to find five eggs, but found seven ! certainly more than one 

 female had laid in the nest on this occasion. After taking these last 

 seven eggs the Bay-wings left ; and though the Screaming Cow-birds 

 continued to make occasional visits to the nest, to my great disappoint- 

 ment they did not lay in it. 



April 12, To-day I have made a discovery, and am as pleased with 

 it as if I had found a new planet in the sky. The mystery of the Bay- 

 wings 5 nest twice found containing over the usual complement of eggs 

 is cleared up, and I have now suddenly become acquainted with the 

 procreant instinct of the Screaming Cow-bird. I look on this as a great 

 piece of good fortune ; for I had thought that the season for making 

 any such discovery was already over, as we are so near to winter. 



The Bay-wings are so social in their habits that they always appear 

 reluctant to break up their companies in the breeding-season; no 

 sooner is this over, and while the young birds are still fed by the 

 parents, all the families about a plantation unite into one flock. 

 About a month ago all the birds about my home had associated in this 

 way together, and went in a scattered flock, frequenting one favourite 

 feeding-spot very much, a meadow about fifteen minutes' walk from the 

 house. The flock was composed, I believe, of three families, sixteen or 

 eighteen birds in all : the young birds are indistinguishable from the 

 adults ; but I knew that most of these birds were young hatched late 

 in the season, from their incessant strident hunger-notes. I first 

 observed them about the middle of March. A week ago, while riding 

 past the meadow where they were feeding, I noticed among them three 

 individuals with purple spots on their plumage. They were at a 



