198 Bird - Lore 



Two days after as I looked from my window I saw that the nest was all 

 built. Four days later I took an extension-ladder andclimbed up to the nest. 

 The mother bird was on the nest as I started to climb, but as I got up she flew 

 away and I saw two small blue eggs. Next day as I looked in the nest I saw 

 there were three eggs in it. Next day when I looked in the nest there were 

 four eggs in it. Five days later when I looked in the nest I saw three small, 

 dingy, wet birds. The mother then came with a worm in her mouth. She 

 did not notice me but gave some of the worm to one of the birds. Then she 

 gave some to the next and then to a third. The fourth egg was pipped and a 

 little bird's head was out. The bird was alive. It was very weak. 



In five days the mother threw the birds out of the nest. They had to fly to 

 keep from falling. They gave a few feeble flaps. All were so surprised that they 

 did not fall that they flapped and flapped until they were raised in the air. 

 — Knox Kinney (age 9 years), Tyngshoro, Mass. 



[Did the mother bird really "throw" the young birds out of the nest, or did they flutter 

 and become uneasy and appear to be crowded out as she cleaned the nest or sought a 

 place in it? This is a point for sharp eyes. Young Swallows stay in the nest until they 

 seem to fill it and to actually overflow it, but when they take their initial flight they are 

 not awkward or apparently afraid, for they fly with ease almost from the start. The 

 young of most perching birds however, must learn something of their environment and 

 test their own powers first, before flying with ease. 



The contribution above is one of a considerable number sent from Tyngsboro, Mass., 

 where an active Junior Audubon Society has been organized by the Grange as shown 

 in the accompanying picture. This Society received the Educational Leaflets of the 

 National Audubon Society through the Grange, one leaflet at a time, as the bird which 

 it described arrived. Prizes of bird-books, games and nesting-boxes were also given by 

 the Grange to the members of the Society for the best original paper on birds. — A. H. W.] 



TWO DAINTY GUESTS 



In the spring of 19 12, my brother built a bird-house for me, out of a trunk 

 of a small ash. It was about a foot long and six inches in diameter, hollowed 

 out inside. We set it on top of a grape-arbor in the back yard. A male and 

 female Wren discovered it and built a nest there. They would fly to the ground 

 and gather string, sticks, grass, and pieces of straw to build their nest. I would 

 sit very close to the little Wren-house and watch them sing. They sang very 

 beautifully and did not seem to be a bit afraid of me. These dainty guests 

 stayed in the house quite a long time and I was very glad to have them there. 

 I love the birds and want to learn as much as I can about their habits. I am 

 enjoying Bird-Lore very much. It will help me in my study of the birds. — 

 Gladys Fanton (Age 13 years). Good Ground, L. I. 



[There are two ways to observe nesting birds. One is to stay quietly by and watch 

 what the birds do ivithout disturbing them, the other is to look into their nests and to 

 interfere more or less with the movements of the parents and young, by handling or 

 otherwise disturbing them. For beginners the former method is preferable. Indeed 

 most observers can learn what they wish to know by simply watching. — A. H. W . 



