274 BIRD LIFE IN AN OLD APPLE-TREE 



a bushel or more of gillyflowers, and it has 

 turned out at least a dozen broods of the great 

 crested flycatcher, and robins and bluebirds in 

 proportion. It carries up one large decayed 

 trunk which some one sawed off at the top be- 

 fore my time, and in this a downy woodpecker 

 is now, January 12, making a home. 



Several years ago a downy woodpecker ex- 

 cavated a retreat in this branch, which the fol- 

 lowing season was appropriated by the blue- 

 birds, and has been occupied by them nearly 

 every season since. 



When the bluebirds first examined the cav- 

 ity in the spring, I suppose they did not find 

 the woodpecker at home, as he is a pretty early 

 riser. 



I happened to be passing near the tree when, 

 on again surveying the premises one afternoon, 

 they found him in. 



The male bluebird was very angry, and I 

 suppose looked upon the innocent downy as an 

 intruder. He seized on him, and the two fell 

 to the ground, the speckled woodpecker quite 

 covered by the blue coat of his antagonist. 

 Downy screamed vigorously, and got away as 

 soon as he could, but not till the bluebird had 

 tweaked out a feather or two. 



He is evidently no fighter, though one would 

 think that a bird that had an instrument with 

 which it could drill a hole into a tree could de- 

 fend itself against the soft- billed bluebird. 



Two seasons the English sparrows ejected the 

 bluebirds and established themselves in it, but 



