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Bird - Lore 



young fluttered from it in alarm. Before we had captured them all, one of the 

 old birds returned, but, after scolding for a while, disappeared. Without delay 

 we fastened the young in the grass beneath the perch upon which the camera was 

 focused and concealed ourselves. After a while one of the old birds came back. 

 We could not tell which one, but it was probably the other one, because only 

 one returned; it showed no alarm, and, when it heard the food-calls of the 

 young, it flew directly to the perch we had prepared. To get the Chat feeding 

 its young and determine the nature of the food it was bringing was not so easy, 

 for while we were placing them upon another perch, the old bird came back and 

 caught us in the act. She told us very plainly in Chat language what she thought 

 of such a proceeding, and waited two hours before she finally fed them and we 

 secured the accompanying photograph. 



Whether the Chats are as sensitive as this in all parts of their range I do 

 not know, because there is a great deal of difference among individual birds. If 

 we can judge from the particular branch of the tribe that lives about Ithaca, 

 however, we would say that shyness is a species characteristic more strongly 

 developed than in the Herons, Gulls, Skimmers, Doves, or any of the species 

 that have a reputation for extreme timidity. 



{To be concluded) 



A CHAT BEFORE LUNCH 



The youngster has waited two hours for this meal, and apparently registers disapproval. The Chat is 



the most difficult bird to photograph the writer has ever encountered 



