HOW TO OBSERVE THEM i8i 



down exactly the spot where you first caught sight 

 of her, then search for the nest. Be careful not to 

 leave any tracks behind, for I am taking it for 

 granted that it will be your desire to protect the 

 bird whose nest you discover and not to molest or 

 rob it in any way. 



Having discovered a number of nests early in 

 the year, periodical visits should be paid to them, 

 so as to discover how long the owners took to build 

 their homesteads; when and how many eggs were 

 laid; how long the eggs took to hatch; how long 

 the young remained in the nest; what they were 

 fed upon and the changes they passed through in 

 size and plumage. Many interesting notes may 

 thus be made, and the parent birds will themselves 

 become tame and confiding, and you will be able 

 to see them at comparatively close quarters and 

 make observations concerning them which is not 

 possible at any other time. 



The great point to recognise in bird stalking and 

 bird watching is to let the feathered population 

 realise that no harm is meted out to them, and when 

 you learn to become on intimate terms of acquaint- 

 ance I have no fear whatever of the result, for you 

 will find bird stalking so interesting and entertain- 

 ing that you will wonder, as you grow older, how 

 it was that you ever permitted yourself to disturb 

 birds and rob them of their treasures. 



There are two little birds very much alike that 



