BIRDS OF NEW YORK 



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of a leaf as it alights, or as a slim, soft colored shape glides noiselessly into 

 the tangle beside one, or as it sits sedately among the foliage peering about 

 for some luckless insect. This and the next species are our only birds 

 that seem to be really fond of hairy caterpillars and they may often be 

 found seated beside their tents, or quietly pursuing them among the branches 

 and swallowing them by scores. From 3 to 4 dozens of caterpillars, 

 whether smooth or hairy, seem to be a full meal for a cuckoo, and as they 



Photo by Clarence F. Stone 

 Yellow-billed cuckoo's nest with eggs and young 



need at least two meals each day, it is easy to see that they render untold 

 service to the agriculturist. 



The Cuckoo's nest is placed among the denser foliage of an apple 

 tree, a small shrub, or a tangle of vines, from 2 to 10 feet from the ground. 

 It is a rude platform of sticks, nearly flat, lined with grasses, leaves and 

 dry catkins. The eggs, varying from 3 to 7 in number, are deposited at 

 intervals of 2 to 4 days, beginning from May 20 to June 15, but occasionally 

 nests with eggs are found as late as the middle of August. Rarely this 



