98 OUK NATIVE SONGSTERS. 



near it ; thus, when affixing it to a mossy-covered 

 trunk, green is the predominant hue ; while, 

 when near the haj-rick, a Large amount of dried 

 grasses renders the nest of similar colour; and again, 

 when sheltered by the ivy, the moss prevails. This 

 ingenuity is not, however, universally practised by 

 the wren, and, as Mr. Jennings has observed, 

 something must depend on the case or difficulty 

 with which the materials can be procured. This 

 writer remarks, tliat when the nest is made wholly 

 of green moss, and he has seen many so made, 

 it is much more neatly and exactly defined than 

 when composed of any other material. Grey 

 lichens and grasses are used in some cases by the 

 wren, and the interior is lined either with hair or 

 feathers, and contains about eight or ten eggs, 

 though sometimes there are as many as eighteen. 

 They are of a yellowish white speckled with 

 brown. 



Many little acts of ingenuity in rendering the 

 nest less obvious to the passer-by, have been re- 

 corded by those who have noticed birds. Mr. Jesse 

 tells us of one that he had in his possession, which 

 being built among some litter, thrown into the 

 yard, so nearly resembled the surrounding objects. 



