BIRDS'-NESTS. 121 



her bill, while her better-dressed half was singing 

 serenely on a distant tree or pursuing his pleasure 

 amid the branches. 



Yet among the majority of our song birds the male 

 is most conspicuous both by his color and manners 

 and by his song, and is to that extent a shield to the 

 female. It is thought that the female is humbler 

 clad for her better concealment during incubation. 

 But this is not satisfactory, as in some cases she is 

 relieved from time to time by the male. In the case 

 of the domestic dove, for instance, promptly at mid- 

 day the cock is found upon the nest. I should say 

 that the dull or neutral tints of the female were a 

 provision of nature for her greater safety at all times, 

 as her life is far more precious to the species than that 

 of the male. The indispensable office of the male 

 reduces itself to little more than a moment of time, 

 while that of his mate extends over days and weeks, 

 if not months. 1 



1 A recent English writer upon this subject presents an array of 

 facts and considerations that do not support this view. He says 

 that, with very few exceptions, it is the rule that, whe both sexei 

 are of strikingly gay and conspicuous colors, the nest is such as to 

 conceal the sitting bird ; while, whenever there is a striking con- 

 trast of colors, the male being gay and conspicuous, the female 

 dull and obscure, the nest is open and the sitting bird exposed 

 to view. The exceptions to this rule among European birds ap- 

 pear to be very few. Among our own birds, the cuckoos and blue 

 jays build open nests, without presenting any noticeable differ- 

 ence in the coloring of the two sexes. The same is true of the 

 pewees, the king-bird, and the sparrows, while the common blue- 

 bird, the oriole, and orchard starling afford examples the othe 



