4 THE LIFE OF A BIRD. 



how many of the ordinations of Supreme Intel- 

 ligence is our ignorance made manifest ! Even 

 the fabrication of the nests of these little animals 

 exceeds our comprehension." These remarks are 

 just; yet we are presented in nature with a large 

 number of instances in which it is easy to trace 

 the motives of these little architects, and the 

 beautiful evidences of intelligence and instinct 

 which they manifest in the selection of both 

 situation and materials for the fabrication of their 

 nests, and the peculiar adaptation of the latter to 

 the habits of the parent and the wants of the young. 

 Trees form favourite sites for the erection of 

 nests. Seated on the summit of a cypress tree, 

 not far from the clear waters that bathe the 

 shores of the Floridas, one hundred and thirty, or 

 one hundred and forty feet high, the great egret of 

 America builds her nest a large flat bundle of 

 sticks rudely laid together. Yet the same bird 

 also selects the mangroves bordering the great 

 dismal swamps swarming with loathsome reptiles, 

 and scarce six feet kbove the water lays her rude 

 and inelegant cradle for the reception of her future 

 offspring. The turtle dove also chooses the tall 

 trees of the forest for her nest. This structure is 



