66 THE WARBLERS 



of expressing the passion felt by the bird, and consequently occur at 

 any time during the breeding season. The chiffchaff has been seen 

 "jerking his wings and uttering his courting-note " even before the 

 arrival of the hen. 1 



It is the latter who constructs the nest, with little or no help from 

 her mate. According to the observations of Mr. H. E. Howard, the 

 cock chiffchaff 's contribution to the joint work appears to give more 

 annoyance than satisfaction to the hen. I have twice watched the 

 hen willow-wren engaged in building, and in both cases the cock con- 

 tented himself with singing and feeding in a tree, while his wife busily 

 collected material upon the ground beneath, and carried it to the nest. 

 Still, there is good evidence that some cocks share in building, if 

 others do not. 2 This probably applies to all three species, and not only 

 in respect to nest-building, but incubation also. 



The same individuality within the species is shown in the choice 

 of a nesting site. Normally, the wood-wren and willow-wren build 

 upon or close to the ground, the chiffchaff well above it, some- 

 times a few inches, sometimes a few feet. But birds, no more than 

 men, permit themselves to be bound by rigid rule. A willow-wren 

 will build several feet above the ground, a chiffchaff in actual contact 

 with it, and a wood-wren is reported to have made its home under it 

 twelve inches down a rabbit-hole. In this case the nest had not 

 the usual dome. 3 Let us add that those willow- wrens and wood- wrens 

 which build upon the ground sometimes pay a heavy penalty. I once 

 found a nest of the former species built in a little hollow, such as 

 would be made by a horse's hoof. It contained six young. After a 

 heavy rainfall I went to revisit it, and, as I approached, knew from the 

 lamentations of the parents that evil had befallen. The young were 

 there, all drowned, and the ants Nature's finishing touch, not mine 

 were busy picking and carrying away their brains. 



Unlike the warblers described in the preceding and following 



1 H. E. Howard, op. cit. Part n. p. 12. 



2 E. L. Turner (in litt.). 



3 British Birds, ii. p. 380 (W. S. Medlicott). 



