Nesting of the Indigo Banting 



BY LILIAN CLEVELAND, West Medford, Mass, 



ON the morning of May 26, 1900, while working in my garden, a 

 sharp chip ! attracted my attention, and, glancing up, I saw a 

 small brown bird perched on the piazza rail, with some plant- 

 down in its bill. After nervously bobbing its head up and down, and 

 twitching the tail from side to side several times, it darted into the deut- 

 zia bush, and in a moment appeared from the other side and flew away. 



Upon examination, 1 found the upright stalks drawn together and 

 fastened with rootlets twined around them. Dried leaves and shreds 

 from the grape-vines also were included in the foundation. Some of 

 the previous year's clematis fluff was next in order. Thinking to help my 

 little visitor, I hung some hairs from a horse's tail about on the bushes. 

 She readily accepted them, and lined the nest beautifully. My desire to 

 identify this plainly dressed bird was great. It looked like a Sparrow, but 

 unlike any of those I knew well. Great was my surprise and delight when, 

 on a birch close by, I next day discovered the pair in consultation. Now 

 identification was easy, for the brilliant iridescent greenish blue of the 

 male was unmistakable. After that he came with his mate often and went 

 into the bush, but I am. quite sure he did not bring any material for the 

 nest. They talked together while there in little chirps and coos. 



After the nest was finished, which was on the 30th, they left it, 

 and, I feared, would not return; but, on June 3, one little white egg 

 was in the nest, the next morning another, and the next still another. 

 Then followed two weeks of incubation, during which time I never saw 

 the male near the nest. I heard him singing from the tree-tops in a 

 neighboring field; but, early or late, so far as 1 know, he did not come 

 to the bush. • The little mother, though at first very much frightened 

 when we watched her, soon became accustomed to our presence, and 

 would not fly of¥ when we leaned over the railing and talked to her in 

 the most flattering language. 



On June 17 these patriotic birds hatched, one in the morning, the other 

 two before night. Then came the question of food for them, and at 

 this time I watched for the father, thinking he would surely come to do 

 his part; but either he was uncommonly lazy, or it was part of the plan 

 to keep his brilliant color away from the vicinity of the nest, as I caught 

 not even a glimpse of him. Owing to the thickness of foliage and 

 blossoms on the bush, it was quite difficult to tell whether the exclusive 

 diet of the nestlings was soft, green worms and three-quarter-inch grass- 

 hoppers or not, but those two were all that we saw them have. Their 

 mother had a busy time hunting grasshoppers by hovering over the uncut 

 grass in an adjoining field. On June 26 the little ones began leaving 



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