THE KITE 125 



the place which it has selected for breeding purposes early in the 

 spring. Here its marvellous powers of flight are well illustrated, 

 and the long forked tail is in constant use, now deflected on one 

 side, now on the other, according to the direction of the curve on 

 which it is travelling. 



The old nest is gradually built up with sticks and rubbish of all 

 kinds : big rolls of wool are almost invariably found in Welsh nests, 

 and bits of rabbit skin and fur, bones, paper, rags, and clumps of dead 

 grass are added till the platform attains the required size. Loose bits 

 of paper are also appropriated when available. The eggs are laid at 

 intervals of three days, and apparently incubation is performed either 

 entirely or almost entirely by the female bird. In one case where 

 the nest was being closely watched shortly before hatching, the 

 female used to leave the nest to feed 1 between 3.30 and 4.30 A.M. 

 Additions are not infrequently made to the nest while incubation is 

 going on at any rate in the earlier stages, and these are probably 

 the work of the male. 



When the young are first hatched the female continues to brood 

 over them, only leaving for short intervals for food, often at about 

 6 A.M., and generally returning in about half an hour. The male bird 

 keeps close at hand and roosts close to the nest. For the first week 

 or two but little food is brought to the nest, but when the young are 

 a fortnight old the supply is greatly increased, both parents working 

 hard to supply the larder. The principal food is rabbits, but chickens 

 are not infrequently brought, and at one nest there were many 

 jackdaws lying about. 



The young seem to be more peacefully inclined than in the case 

 of the buzzard, and sit contentedly together in the nest side by side. 

 They are pretty little creatures at this early stage : the down on the 

 head and breast is white, and on the top of the head it is rather long 

 and stands upright, forming a kind of crest. On the back and wings 

 the down is a delicate pale brown. In one Welsh nest, where the 

 young were hatched on 19th May, they left the nest on 1st July and 



