66 MY LIFE AS A NATURALIST 



several years past a number of pairs of these sagacious birds have 

 actually built their nests in the chimneys. When I first heard of the 

 matter, I was inclined to conjecture that some mistake had been 

 made in identity, and that the fast-increasing Jackdaw was the 

 culprit. A personal inspection of two nests, however, revealed 

 the fact that the birds were Rooks, and there is now exhibited, 

 at Letch worth Museum, one of these chimney nests containing 

 a clutch of five eggs. 



FIG. 29. YOUNG LONG-EARED OWLS. 



Before the great blizzard of March 28th, 1916, it was reported 

 to me that some Rooks that had nested at a Rookery which had 

 been in existence for several generations, made an inspection of 

 their old nest trees, and then went away. Later, the blizzard 

 came, and some of the nest trees were blown down. Although 

 two seasons have gone by, the birds have not yet returned to 

 their old haunt, indeed, they have joined the inhabitants of an 

 adjoining Rookery. These latter birds and the new-comers 

 invariably destroy their nests each year. This is most unusual, 

 as mentioned in a later chapter, " Some Bird Problems." 



One more Rook incident must suffice. Some of these birds 

 were in the habit of coming to a friend's lawn to drink out of a 

 pan of water. One day the receptacle containing the water was 

 changed for a deeper vessel. The Rooks came to drink as usual, 

 but, after carrying out a close inspection of the second pan of 



