152 THE GOLDEN ORIOLE 



When the males arrive at their breeding-places they may be 

 heard whistling from before dawn onward. At this period they are 

 very quarrelsome, resenting any intrusion on each other's territory. 

 Dr. Gromier says that on one occasion two fine males fell to the 

 ground at his feet, locked together in deadly combat, and Carl Sachse, 

 quoted by Dresser, says that he has seen four or five together fighting 

 in the air. Of the courting actions of this species, owing to its shy 

 and suspicious nature, nothing appears to be recorded. But in a week 

 or two those birds which have not been rejoined by their mates have 

 secured partners and settled down to family life. They show consider- 

 able courage in driving off birds of prey from the neighbourhood of the 

 nest, and even the comparatively harmless kestrel is promptly attacked 

 and driven off by both sexes if he incautiously approaches too near. 



In the well- wooded districts where the oriole makes its home in 

 Europe, both birds spend most of their time among the branches, 

 where they find an ample supply of insect food during the early part 

 of the summer, descending only rarely to the ground, and in a furtive 

 and uneasy manner, in order to drink. Dr. Gromier, who has 

 studied the bird closely in the south-east of France, 1 is of opinion 

 that the work of nest-building is carried on entirely by the hen, who 

 is, however, always accompanied by her mate. He states that in 

 collecting material she prefers to perch on some low bough from 

 which she collects the grasses and roots in her bill, without actually 

 touching the ground. Naumann, on the other hand, distinctly asserts 

 that both sexes share in nest-building, and describes how the male 

 usually brings material in his bill, while the female assists him in 

 fastening the long stalks and bits of fibre into their places! He 

 adds that when the foundation of the nest has been built the hen 

 sits in it in order to deepen and shape it. The nest, which has 

 already been described, is quite characteristic, and unlike that of 

 any other European bird, woven round the angle of some horizontal 

 fork of a side branch and forming a secure cradle for the eggs. The 



1 Revue Franqaise d'Ornithologie, 1909, p. 60. 



