BIRDS THAT WE SHOULD ENCOURAGE TO 

 NEST ABOUT OUR COUNTRY HOMES 



TO aid those who have a fondness for birds, and wish to 

 attract them about their homes, but who through lack of 

 opportunity possess no intimate knowledge of the nesting-habits 

 of each species, the following list of common birds is given. 



All of these thus enumerated are found generally throughout 

 our three Southern New England States, and when offered pro- 

 tection will nest on our farms, often in such proximity to our 

 houses that their home-building and domestic cares may be ob- 

 served from the luxury of an arm-chair on the veranda, or from 

 a convenient window. Birds of different species vary greatly in 

 their choice of a location for a nesting-site, and it is from our 

 knowledge of the peculiar nesting-habit of each species that we 

 are able to anticipate their desires and prepare a congenial 

 environment. 



Some birds nest on the ground, or in tussocks of grass; some 

 in low bushes and thick shrubbery; others among the branches 

 of our orchard and shade trees ; some few species excavate holes 

 in the decayed trunks, or branches of trees; and some species 

 not able to excavate holes for themselves, will occupy these 

 vacated apartments, and also the nesting-boxes prepared by man. 



Although we may not solve the secret of the Bluebirds' pref- 

 erence for the nesting-box, let us welcome the little home-seekers 

 by offering an apartment to their liking. In many sections now 

 over-run by that exotic pest, the European House Sparrow, and 

 where nesting-boxes intended for the use of our native birds 

 would be immediately tenanted by this unwelcome guest, birds 

 of other nesting-habits may be attracted by the planting of thick 

 shrubbery and coniferous trees. 



Therefore the birds in this subjoined list have been grouped in 

 accordance with their nesting-habits. 



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