JOURNAL OF MAINE ORNITHOLOGICAL SOCIETY. 



'47 



When all seemed satisfied !she re- 

 mained waiting upon the edge of the 

 nest and as one moved she looked in- 

 tently, then cleaned the nest, carry- 

 ing the excretion away. 



Absence interfered with further ob- 

 servations at this interesting period, 

 and the one favorable to close obser- 

 vation. 



These callow babes now required 

 the mother's constant care, but in a 

 few days when they were clothed with 

 their own feathers, and gifted with 

 strength, . her attention perhaps was 

 not diminished, but certainly it was 

 directed in other channels, for we 

 saw but little of her about the nest 

 except at night. 



On the 26th, the apparatus was 

 again adjusted, (a slow process,) and 

 followed by a wait of nearly an hour, 

 but the mother did not appear. A 

 young bird stood on tottering legs, 

 shook its heavy feathered wings, 

 preened its scanty plumage and after 

 its toilet was complete, settled for a 

 nap or rest. 



Then another repeated the operation 

 and the stir seemed endless. That 

 night the mother was at her post 

 brooding her flock. 



August 31, the apparatus was again 

 adjusted and a position near the nest 

 taken. The three young (one having 

 died in an accident the twentieth) 

 were attractive looking little birds. 

 All were now disturbed by the strange 

 objects so near them, but they soon 

 became reassured and behaved nat- 

 urally. 



One was a runt and remained quiet 

 in its nest, perhaps thankful for the 

 room it now enjoyed. Another was a 

 precocious youngster, in its well fit- 

 ting and becoming suit of mesopitiles*, 

 and climbed out on the branch, then 

 up on the twigs above the nest. The 

 third was so well behaved that it at- 



tracted little attention, as it stood up 

 in the nest or on its edge. 



The mother did not come but by and 

 by a flash of gold in a nearby tree, and 

 no doubt a low note inaudible to my 

 ear, animated the little family. In an 

 instant the precocious one had 

 stretched his wings and launched out 

 with a cry of freedom. This must have 

 been inspiring for away went his nest- 

 mate in another direction, leaving the 

 little runt in full possession of the 

 nest. 



But the inexperienced wings were 

 unequal to the precocious ambition 

 and he fell to the ground in the ad- 

 joining orchard. His sister (?), with 

 better judgment, stopped in the furth- 

 er branches of the nest tree. 



Approaching the fallen youngster, 

 he looked upon me with his bright 

 eyes, but essayed not another flight. 



Hopping along came a great flabby 

 toad. Here was an experiment not to 

 be interrupted nor neglected, so taking 

 a position behind the toad I had the 

 satisfaction of seeing it moving 

 straight at the bird. Now it was one 

 jump away. Neither showed any in- 

 terest in the other, but hop — and the 

 awkward creature bumped against the 

 little bird, with absolute indifference. 

 The frightened bird dashed away but 

 stopped in the garden, and clung to a 

 leaf of corn. 



Then the young adventurer was re- 

 turned to its nest where it seemed con- 

 tented until its gay father came to 

 an adjacent tree and the little thing 

 flew to join him. 



September 1, the little runt re- 

 mained in the nest but the stronger 

 brethren had disappeared. It was 

 pleasing to find that its mother came 

 and brooded it at night. 



September 2. An empty nest. 

 *Mesoptiles — feathers of the juvenal 

 plumage — ie true feathers between the 

 natal down and first winter plumage. 



