A Bluebird Study 93 



One afternoon, when all had been going on very quietly with the Bluebird 

 family, the male suddenly flew into a white oak near-by, making a queer 

 snapping noise, and the female promptly joined him. Both were greatly 

 excited, and I saw that they were furiously and silently, except for the snap- 

 ping of their bills, pursuing a red squirrel, who was evidently frightened, and 

 ran back and forth trying to get away from them, and they did not leave him 

 until they had driven him out of the white oak, and into some pines further 

 from the nest. Then they came back, and resumed the business of feeding 

 the young. Later the red squirrel appeared again, and was again chased off 

 by the Bluebirds, with the same snapping of bills and fierce intentness. 



The young Bluebird watched every bird that came near the nest, chattering 

 at them and attacking them if they were inclined to fight, and showing as 

 great a sense of responsibility as the old birds. 



The crack at the back of the nest was widening, and becoming a danger to 

 the yoimg birds in the nest. By June 26, the notes that came from the nest 

 were true Bluebird notes, not the mere squeaking of the earlier days, and the 

 little beaks were frequently seen at the entrance of the nest. 



Late in the afternoon of the 26th, when I came again to the Bluebirds' nestj 

 the nestling and the female flew away in an agitated manner. I came close to 

 the nest, and the afternoon sunshine fell directly on the entrance, lighting up 

 the interior, so that I could see one young one looking very alert and wide- 

 eyed. On the ground was a tuft of tiny bluish gray feathers, bloody at the 

 ends. Something had evidently happened. 



I did not then go nearer the nest for fear of further disturbing the remaining 

 young, and making the parents more unhappy. But, the next morning early, 

 I w^ent out to the nest. Going to the back of it, I saw that the crack had been 

 widened still further, and the nestling that was pressed against it was dead. 

 Some enemy, seeing the crack, had enlarged it and, having killed the young 

 bird, tried to draw it out to eat it, for the feathers that were scattered about 

 had been roughly pulled out. As it seemed impossible for the living to exist 

 in such close quarters with the dead, I removed the dead nestling, greatly to 

 the distress of the parents and the older nestling. 



That afternoon, the birds were attending to their regular duties, though 

 rather more nervous than usual. It was astonishing to see how alertly the 

 little heads came out of the nest now when food w^as brought, and once one 

 of the young ones put its head out of the opening and, looking about with 

 evident interest, called once or twice. They showed great excitement when the 

 food arrived and, after the old birds left them, their heads were stretched out 

 longingly, and the suggestion of coming flight could be seen in every motion. 

 The female no longer came quietly to the nest, but chattered excitedly, sitting 

 just above the nest before feeding the young, holding the food, and uttering at 

 interv-als a note that even to a human, had a compelHng quahty, and, each 

 time she uttered it, she looked inqmringly toward the nest; seeming to call 



