THE AMERICAN CEOW. 411 



side, or alternately rising- one above the other and suddenly darting down again 

 with wings completely closed, and in the meantime uttering the choicest crow 

 talk to their prospective mates. On the ground they do not appear so prepos- 

 sessing; their walk is somewhat jerky and uneven, and they do not look uearlj^ 

 as dignitied as the Raven. I believe Crows remain mated through life. 



Nest building in the more southern States begins sometimes by February 

 20, and correspondingly later northward. In the vicinity of Washington, Dis- 

 trict of Columbia, fresh eggs may be occasionally found in the last week in March, 

 but more frequently during the first two weeks in April. Along our northern 

 border they nest generally about the beginning of May; and even in the most 

 northern portions of their range they have been known to breed equally early, 

 but most frequently nidification here is protracted well into June. In Idaho, 

 Washington, and Oi-egon it is at its height between April 15 and May 20. The 

 nests are bulky, usually well constructed, and placed in the forks of branches, 

 generally well up and hard to reach. Occasionally one is placed near the main 

 trunk, this being mostly the case where bushy cedars or junipers are used. Any 

 sort of tree may be chosen for a nesting site, providing it is one of dense foliage, 

 which will hide the nest well. In some localities pine trees seem to be preferred, 

 while in others oaks are often selected. In the West cottonwoods, junipers, and 

 willows are most frequently used. Nests are usually placed at heights varying 

 from 20 to 60 feet; but I have found some barely 6 feet from the ground, and 

 in many localities in the West they are i-arely placed over 20 feet up. Here also 

 they are said to occasionally nest on the ground, but I have never observed this 

 personally. Crows rarely nest in deep forests, the borders of woods and the 

 river bottoms being preferred for such purposes. The nests are composed out- 

 wardly of sticks, weed stalks, corn husks, and other coarse material, and lined 

 with grapevine bark, fine roots, dry grass, leaves, straw, moss, rags, wool, and 

 hair, the lining varying in different localities. Where cattle are plenty the nests 

 are often found lined with more or less of their hair. These finer materials are 

 well quilted together. The outer diameter of the nest is usually about 24 inches 

 by 9 inches in depth. The inner cup is from 4 to 6 inches deep) and from 12 to 

 15 inches in diameter. This prevents the eggs from being thrown out of the 

 nest during high winds when placed in slender branches in the extreme tops of 

 trees. 



The number of eggs to a set varies from four to eight. Sets of five are 

 most commonly found, while those of seven are rare, and those of eight quite 

 unusual. Mr. A. C. Kempton, Wolfville, Nova Scotia, writes me that he found 

 a set of ten eggs in the spring of 1890, which he believes were laid by the same 

 bird. In the Western States usually from three to five eggs constitute a set, 

 and those of six, according to my observations, are much rarer than in the 

 East. Incubation lasts about eighteen days, and both parents assist in this duty. 

 The young are born blind and naked, and remain in the nest about three weeks. 

 While Crows steal many of the eggs of other birds, they apparently do not 

 molest any of their own kind, but if several pairs nest close together they will 



