AMERICAN ORNITHOLOGY. 



Ill 



the ground and most often in ravines or near the banks of streams 

 flowing through the woods or down mountain sides. There are no pe- 

 culiarities in their actions or habits to distinguish them from the east- 

 ern Black-caps other than their richly colored plumage and a slightly 

 narrower and paler colored bill. The female differs from the male in 

 plumage only in the duller cap or sometimes in the absence of that 

 ornament and the young birds never have a black cap the first year, the 

 crown being greenish like the back. 



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A few years ago while on my way to school one 

 warm spring morning, I called at a neighbor's pump to 

 wash the dust from my parched throat. While thus 

 engaged my attention was attracted by the sudden ap- 

 pearance of a Chickadee on a nearby currant bush. 

 Having been looking precisely in that direction, and 

 not seeing the Chickadee fly there I was naturally a 

 little curious to know where it came from. It soon 

 flew away and I thought it had gone for good, but after 

 lingering a few minutes I saw a Chickadee in an apple 

 tree a few rods away that I thought was the same as 

 first seen. 



After it had hopped about the lower branches of the 

 tree for a short time it flew to the currant bush again. 

 This time it had a little bunch of moss in its bill, and did not stop 

 long for investigation, but gave a quick dart and was out of sight al- 

 most at my feet. I stepped around to the current bush, and the mys- 

 tery was solved. There in an old decayed splitting block, used as a 

 flower-pot stand, was a little round hole. I had not been here long 

 when little Miss Chickadee, having deposited her burden, made ner 

 appearance at the entrance. Upon seeing me she flitted quickly away, 

 not stopping for the usual pause at the current bush. 



I had heard of a Kingbird building its nest in the gutter to a house, 

 and of a Pewits building its nest on a clothes line, but I had never heard 

 of anything like this and surely, I began to think it must be the time of 

 year that the Chickadee went crazy. At any rate I thought that this pair 

 were crazy to select so public a location for a home to rear their young. 



