538 HOMES WITHOUT HANDS. 



CHAPTER XXVIII. 



FEATHERED BRANCH-BUILDERS. 



The Rook and its Nesting-place. — Materials and Structure of the Nest. — Some 

 Habits of the Rook. — The Crow. —Difference between the Nest of the Rook and 

 the Crow. — The Heron and its Mode of Nidification. — The Heronry at Walton 

 Hall. — Rustic Ideas respecting the Heron's Nest. — The Chaffinch. — Locality 

 and Structure of its beautiful Nest. — Mode of obtaining Materials. — The Gold- 

 finch and its Home.— Distinction between the Nests of the Goldfinch and Chaf- 

 finch. — The Bullfinch.— Locality and Form of its Nest. — Variability of Struc- 

 ture.— The Blue-eyed Yellow Warbler.— Curious Materials of its Nest.— Its 

 remarkable Habits. — The Bald-headed Eagle. — Why so called. — Wilson and 

 Audubon's Account of its Nest. — The Golden Oriole and its beautiful Nest. — 

 Mode of catching the' Bird. — The Red-winged Starling, its Value and Demer- 

 its. — Its gregarious Habits. — Locality and Structure of its Nest. — The Yellow- 

 breasted Chat and its odd Ways. — Its Courage and Affection for its Nest and 

 Young. — Structure of its Nest — The Ringdove and its curious Nest. — The 

 Whitethroat. — Description of the Locality and Structure of the Nest. — Reasons 

 for its various popular Names. — The Mocking-bird. — The Water Hen and its 

 Nesting. — Its habit of covering the Eggs. 



We pass now to the many birds which build their nests on 

 branches of trees or shrubs, and which may therefrom be termed 

 Aerial Builders. A vast proportion of the feathered tribes 

 select branches as a site for their habitation, so that only the re- 

 markable examples will be mentioned or figured. 



Perhaps the most conspicuous of all ordinary branch-nests are 

 those which are made by the Eooks and the Crows. 



Every one has seen the nests of the former of these two birds. 

 They are large, dark, and are placed upon the topmost boughs 

 of the tree, so that they can be seen at a considerable distance. 

 Their position is evidently intended as a safeguard against the 

 attacks of various enemies, among which the bird-nesting boy is 

 pre-eminently the most dangerous. Scarcely would the boughs 

 endure the weight of a cat or monkey, and so slender are they in 

 many cases that the spectator wonders how they can support the 

 nest, with its living contents of a parent and three or four young. 



The foundation of the nest is composed of sticks of various 

 sizes and lengths, all, however, being tolerably light and dry, the 



