178 THE BIRDS OF SHERWOOD FOREST. 



inch and a half in diameter ; but it was on one very 

 much smaller than this, and close to the stem, that this 

 apology for a nest was placed. It was formed of very 

 slender birch twigs; but they had been so sparingly 

 used that it was simply a piece of lattice work, through 

 which the two eggs were distinctly visible from the 

 ground, the distance being about twelve or fourteen 

 feet. One of these eggs was very much larger than the 

 other a peculiarity I have noticed on several other 

 occasions. I knew an instance in which a wood pigeon 

 chose a very singular site for her nest ; this was none 

 other than a rabbit hole. A pigeon had frequently 

 been seen coming out of this hole ; the mouth was there- 

 fore stopped, and a cut made at some distance from it ; 

 on reaching the hole the hen bird was taken, with two 

 eggs which she had laid. 



In April, 1861, Mr. Sterling Howard communicated 

 to the Sheffield Literary and Philosophical Society, a 

 most remarkable instance of the selection of unusual 

 materials for their nests by a number of domestic pigeons, 

 and these were no other than horsenails ! He said, 

 " Over one end of the blacksmith's shop is a rude loft, 

 in which are a number of boxes, the domiciles of the 

 pigeons. The nails, which were abstracted from canvas 

 "bags and other receptacles, were of the ordinary kind for 

 horseshoes, of various sizes, some new, others old and 

 crooked. They were, however, laid with some regard to 

 comfort, inasmuch as the points were not allowed to pro- 

 ject upwards, but without any admixture of softer mate- 

 rials This is the more singular as there was abundance 

 of straw, shavings, &a, in the neighbourhood. On these 

 'iron beds' the birds had laid their eggs, which were 

 just ready for hatching when the discovery was made of 



