BIRDS OF PEASEMARSH 



find that while they were away the Sparrows 

 took possession, holding the nest even though 

 they may not want to nest there. 



And what a wonderful nest this European 

 Sparrow has usurped, the sort of a nest he could 

 never have built for himself. No one could 

 watch a Swallow build without the greatest 

 wonder and admiration. They can plaster a 

 nest on a beam or wall so firmly that it will re- 

 main a fixture for years. Down in the mud 

 puddles they find their plaster, and their beaks 

 are their trowels. They will work away in the 

 puddles getting mud of the exact constituency 

 required. Then away they go, plaster it on that 

 wonderful little structure, and back they come 

 for more. If the season is very dry they can be 

 greatly helped, and sometimes attracted to a 

 place, if some mud is kept near, on some old 

 boards or in a broken box. 



Though it may take time, ingenuity and pa- 

 tience to protect the Barn Swallows, it is well 

 worth while, for every particle of food they 

 take is lessening our insect pests. If forced out 

 of our barns and sheds to nest they will be at 

 the mercy of their natural enemies, larger and 

 more deadly than European Sparrows, and 

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