THE WHIP-POOR-WILL. 149 



although I made some noise trying to fight off a swarm of musquitoes which 

 assailed me from all sides. Its head appeared to be all mouth, and its notes 

 were uttered so rapidly that, close as I was to the bird, they sounded like one 

 long, continuous roll. A few seconds after his first effort (it was the male) he 

 was joined by his mate, and she at once commenced to respond with a peculiar, 

 low, buzzing or grunting note, like " gaw-gaw-gaw," undoubtedly a note of 

 approval or endearment. This evidently cost her considerable effort; her head 

 almost touched the ground while littering it, her plumage was relaxed, and 

 her whole body seemed to be in a violent tremble. The male in the meantime 

 had sidled up to her and touched her bill with his, which made her move 

 slightly to one side, but so slowly that he easily kept close alongside of her. 

 These sidling movements were kept up for a minute or more each time; first 

 one would move away, followed by the other, and then it was reversed; both 

 were about equally bold and coy at the same time. Their entire love making 

 looked exceedingly human, and the female acted as timid and bashful as many 

 young maidens would when receiving the first declarations of their would-be 

 lovers, while the lowering of her head might easil}- be interpreted as being 

 done to hide her blushes. Just about the time I thought this courtship would 

 reach its climax, a dog ran out of the house and caused both to take flight. 

 He always showed an unaccountable antipathy for these birds, and invariably 

 chased them as soon as one would alight near by. I watched for them on 

 several subsequent evenings, in the same place, but they never returned there 

 so early, but their fresh tracks on the sand showed that the place had been 

 visited later in the night. 



In the more southern portions of its range the Whip-poor-will nests usually 

 about the first week in May, occasionally only during the last two weeks in 

 April, and in the more northern parts usually not before June 



Mr. H. W. Flint, of New Haven, Connecticut, has kindly furnished me with 

 the following notes on this species: "This beautiful bird is a- great favorite of 

 mine, and I have devoted considerable time to studying its habits. It shows a 

 strong attachment for certain localities to the neglect of others apparently 

 equally suited to its tastes, and I have taken five sets of its eggs within 100 feet 

 of a given point, and even when the first set was taken the female will often lav 

 again within a rod or two of the original site. It nests rather early, May "20 

 to 25 being the average date of my finds. I know of no more ludicrous sight 

 in bird life than that offered by the female when suddenly surprised with 

 young. She flies or rather flops about the intruder in a circle, often alight- 

 ing to tumble about upon the ground among the leaves, spreading the tail and 

 opening the mouth, at the same time emitting a sound something like the cry or 

 whine of a very young puppy, and also other guttural, uncouth sounds, wholly 

 indescribable, the young themselves, in their scanty dress of dark vellow fuzz, 

 apparently all mouth, adding to the general effect. I once, and once only, saw 

 a female (the male is never present at the nest) carry a young bird about a rod, 

 but can not say she used her bill, and don't think she did, but I am almost 



