The Rose-Breasted Grosbeak 



363 



A. On 12 of these visits (11 with willow seeds and 1 with ane- 

 mome) they were seen to pick the seeds, bring them to the nest 

 and feed the nestlings without swallowing them. 



B. On 53 visits they came to the nest with seeds in their mouths, 

 shelled ithem and fed them to the nestlings. 



C. On 120 visits the food was not visible at any time ; but every 

 feeding action was the same as on other visits. 



D. . At no time during the 459 feedings did we detect the slightest 

 muscular action, such as might be expected in regurgitation. 



Rose-breasted Grosbeak. 

 Fig. III.- — 5 Inspecting the Nest. 



One of the most interesting- features of this method of 

 feeding- was the ease and dexterity with which the grosbeaks 

 used their clumsy looking beaks in extracting the meats from 

 the seeds. Although we watched them, many times, we could 

 not determine exactly how it was accomplished. The notch 

 in the beak and the tongue played the important part in the 

 work, which was carried on with such rapidity that a minia- 

 ture shower of discarded material fell to the ground as they 

 worked over a beak full of seeds. 



