208 LIFE-HISTORIES OF BIRDS 



of grasses, slender stalks of Ambrosia, probably 

 artemisice folia, cucurbitaceous tendrils, undevelop- 

 ed leaves of Pyrus mains, exteriorly; and lined with 

 soft flower-bearing stalks of Panicum capillare, and. 

 delicate roots of grasses, internally. The above is 

 a description of a typical nest in this latitude. In 

 a single nest before us, a marked deviation from 

 the normal form is noticeable. The exterior is 

 composed of the stems of Poa annua, Phleum prcz- 

 tense, small roots, dried leaves of Verbascum 

 Thapsus, young green leaves of Pyrus malus and 

 others. The entire framework is compactly bound 

 together by long leaves of grasses, broad strips of 

 colored rags and lint of the same, and variously 

 colored strings. The rags and strips constitute a 

 promenent feature of the structure. The interior 

 is lined with strings, lint, flower-bearing stalks of 

 Panicum capillare, fine roots of grasses, and ten- 

 drils of Cucurbita. The nest is four and a half 

 inches in diameter, and three in depth; the cavity 

 being three inches wide, and two and a half inches 

 deep. 



This last described nest was located upon a 

 horizontal branch of an apple-tree near its ex- 

 tremity, and at a distance of fifteen paces from an 

 occupied dwelling. A pupil of ours furnished -the 

 strings and rags alluded to. When these articles 

 were first proffered, the birds were not slow to per- 

 ceive the advantages which might accrue from their 

 use. Even after he had ceased to supply the 

 materials, the birds would fly to the bush upon 



