128 



Wild Birds. 



one's finger." ' They become equally tame when hard pressed by hunger in the remote 

 woods, and I have no doubt that the following account which was given to me by a 

 man who worked at a woodchopper's camp in New Hampshire during the winter 

 is strictly true. He said that at meal times the Chickadees would come about and pick 

 up any crumbs that were left over or were thrown to them, and that they soon became 

 so bold as to alight on the hand, or hat, and even to take pieces of bread from the 

 mouth ; that he would often amuse himself by trying to " close over them " with his 

 hand, and that while they were usually too quick for him, he had caught them in this 

 manner. 



Early in the winter of 1899, a Red-breasted Nuthatch formed the habit of going to 

 a certain yard in Jefferson, Ohio, for food." At first it stayed among the trees like the 

 Brown Creepers, but at length came to the window-sill for scraps of suet which were 



placed there. This window 

 happened to be opposite a 

 pump and sink, but the Nut- 

 hatch soon showed no fear 

 even when one stood close by 

 and worked the pump. Blue 

 Jays, Downyand Hairy Wood- 

 peckers, Chickadees, and Eng- 

 lish Sparrows also came to the 

 garden for food. After several 

 weeks of this kind of treat- 

 ment Mr. Sim went outside, 

 placed some suet on his palm 

 and rested his hand on the 

 window-sill. The Nuthatch 

 came to the lure, picked up a 

 piece of the food, and appar- 

 ently tried to hide it between 

 his thumb and finger. After 

 the Red-breasted Nuthatch de- 

 parted a Whitebreast came down, helped himself to the suet and was off. After this the 

 Nuthatches often came and alighted on somebody's hand, head, or shoulder, but the Red- 

 breast was much the tamest. When she was up in the big elm tree, she would swoop down 

 at call, not touching a twig between her lofty perch and the hand. Hickory nuts were 

 offered and preferred to the suet, but the seeds of the Norway spruce were still more to 

 her taste. She would fly to a branch with a seed, rub off its wing, and after placing it 

 in a suitable notch or crack, eat it leisurely. The Red-breasted Nuthatch would drink 

 from a dish held in the hand, would take the proffered food while perched near the 

 ground, and once even settled down in the hand as if going to sleep. 



These birds were seen to eat snow, and Chickadees would frequently cling to an 

 icicle on the roof and catch the drops of water as they fell from a shorter icicle near by. 



1 Bird Studies with a Camera, p. 49. 



4 For this account I am indebted to Mr. Robert J. Sim of Jefferson, Ohio. 



Fig. 125 Female Red-eyed Vireo feeding young. In these birds the be- 

 havior was perfectly free after the first day of study. 



