THE CANARY BIRD. _ 33 



The female, as with the majority of birds, is usually the 

 architect, the male only selecting the place and procuring 

 materials, the coarser of which is used for the external struc- 

 ture, and the finer for lining the inside of the nest. The 

 females will sometimes show indications of their instinct by 

 building nests after their own fashion, generally being irregu- 

 lar in figure, and not nicely finished, at least externally. It is 

 in the nest itself, where the pairing takes place, the female 

 attracting the male by a continuous piping note, repeated more 

 quickly the nearer she is to laying. An interval of seven or 

 eight days elapses between the first pairing and laying the 

 first egg. Every day afterwards, nearly at the same hour, an 

 egg is laid, the number varying from two to six. 



BREEDING, INCUBATION, ETC. 



The month of March is the best time to place the birds in 

 the breeding cage. Of these, there are two kinds, either a 

 large one, made of wire, as is shown at page 15, in which it is 

 better to place a male, and one female, than one male and 

 two females together, like the one shown in the preceding page ; 

 or the birds may have range of an entire room. All breeding 

 places must be exposed to the warmth and light of the sun, 

 and be hung about with nBsts made of turned wood, tin, or 

 little wicker baskets, two for each pair. 



When a room is allotted to the purpose, it ought to contain 

 shrubs for the birds to perch or build upon, with a plenty of 

 fresh water to drink and bathe in, that being indispensable for 

 all birds. The light should be admitted into the east or south- 

 east, for the benefit of the morning sun, and the windows 

 should have wire cloth over them, that the birds may enjoy the 

 fresh air. The floor of the apartment should be strewed with 

 clean gravel or sand, on which should be thrown celery or 

 chickweed; but when breeding, they should have nothing 

 except hard-chopped eggs, dried roll, cake without salt, and 

 once in two or three days a few poppy seeds. 

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