48 THE BIRDS OF BERKS AND BUCKS. 



when the dead branch was sawn off a few inches 

 below where the bottom of the excavation was sup- 

 posed to be. A hole perfectly round and an inch 

 and -a half in diameter had been made about six inches 

 from the extremity of the branch, the upper part of 

 which had been blown off by the wind, and was 

 continued downwards for about a foot, gradually 

 increasing in diameter to the bottom, where it termi- 

 nated in a round cavity about the size of a break- 

 fast cup. Unfortunately, sufficient time had not 

 been allowed for the deposition of the full comple- 

 ment of eggs, three only having been laid on a few 

 chips of wood almost as fine as sawdust. 



1 In the year following the same pair of birds 

 drilled a circular hole through the flinty bark of the 

 same branch, and excavated down the stem to a simi- 

 lar depth. On sawing off the branch on the loth 

 of June, four young birds nearly ready to fly were 

 found in the cavity. They were very active, fre- 

 quently ascending to the entrance of the hole and 

 uttering a loud querulous cry. These young birds 

 were sent to the Zoological Society, but did not 

 survive many days. In the spring of 1863, the 

 same pair made a hole in another of the Formosa 

 poplars at the height of fifty-five feet, and deposited 

 four eggs. These delicate finely-coloured eggs were 

 very beautiful, and measured three-quarters of an inch 

 in length by half an inch in breadth.' 



