The Cedar Bird. 



61 



feathers has appeared in front of the eye and replaces the fawn-colored fillet already 

 mentioned. This change takes place in about four days. 



The fourth and in many ways the 

 most interesting nest was built in a 

 pine, some account of which has al- 

 ready been given, in illustrating the 

 change of the nesting site. I watched 

 these birds over ten hours from the 

 tent, saw a great many interesting 

 sights, and made a long series of pic- 

 tures. 



The young at this nest were vis- 

 ited and fed forty-seven times during 

 an interval of exactly ten hours and 

 forty-seven minutes, on three differ- 

 ent days. On the last day they were 

 fed on the average once in ten min- 

 utes. The food consisted of choke 

 cherries and red bird cherries, varied 

 with raspberries, blackberries, and 

 blueberries, together with insects 

 which, during the last days of life at 

 the nest, constituted about one quar- 

 ter of the fare. At one half the 

 number of visits recorded, fruit alone 

 was served. From six to ten cher- 

 ries were brought in the gullet at a 



time, and once by count eleven blueberries. Feeding was effected almost always 

 by regurgitation in whole or part, and rarely was any food visible when the birds 

 came to the nest. Now and then, however, a bird would approach loaded to the muzzle, 

 with a berry or insect in the bill to round out the measure. Soft fruits like raspberries 

 were crushed to a pulp, and insects which are commonly served with the berries, 

 came up covered with saliva, and often in an unrecognizable state. The staple animal 

 food was grasshoppers and I have seen the large cicada or harvest-fly brought to the 

 nest, but never dragon-flies, butterflies, or moths. The cicada made a lively struggle 

 for a few minutes ; it was placed in one open throat after another and withdrawn eight 

 different times, before a gullet was found capable of the proper reaction time. If a bird 

 was slow he lost his chance, and another was tried. The key was at last fitted to the 

 lock, and the bruised and battered cicada was taken in, but the old bird had not finished 

 her task. She began tossing up her head and producing bird cherries. Then she gave 

 the nest a thorough renovation. In doing this the mother often walks around the rim, 

 and attends to each nestling in succession, sometimes even inspecting one bird more than 

 once. 



At first I found it difficult to tell the old birds apart until I noticed a dis- 

 tinguishing mark on the female, who had a little bare spot where the feathers had 



Fig. 46. Cleaning the nest. When the young are fed, the duty of 

 the old bird is but half done. 



