202 WITH NATURE AND A CAMERA. 



The male birds of many species feed their 

 mates whilst they are engaged in brooding. I 

 remember hiding up one evening with a Yorkshire 

 gamekeeper in a small wood for a cock Sparrow- 

 hawk which he said would be sure to come and 

 feed the hen sitting on her nest close by. We 

 located ourselves amongst some stunted birch trees 

 in a place well above the nest, and commanding a 

 good view of nearly every winged approach to it, 

 and waited. In a while a very curious looking 

 object came sailing down the ghyll just above the 

 tree tops; there was a loud bang, and it literally 

 came apart, one half falling obliquely with a thud 

 to the ground, and the other disappearing, as if by 

 magic, round the shoulder of a small hill. I picked 

 up the portion which we had seen fall, and it 

 proved to be a young Peewit plucked almost bare, 

 and still warm. The sound of the keeper's un- 

 successful shot put the hen off her nest. We 

 waited until she returned, however, to receive what 

 my companion considered a fatal wound, but, 

 although badly hurt, the bird was actually sitting 

 upon her nest next day, and when killed the 

 devoted creature had dried blood running the full 

 length of her tail and wing quills. 



Cock Robins feed the hens assiduously whilst 

 they are sitting, and in return for their care receive 

 a low twitter of thanks. 



Most people are aware of the fact that in nearly 

 all clutches of House and Tree Sparrows' eggs one 

 differs widely from the rest in regard to the 

 character of its markings. 



Last spring I succeeded in finding and identify- 

 ing by the black patch on the chin and throat of 

 the female a nest belonging to the latter species. It 

 was situated in a hole in a pollard willow, and when 



