INCIDENTS ABOUT BIRDS. 



There is much to be learned about the 

 habits of birds, even in a casual observa- 

 tion of them as we meet them from time 

 to time. 



It is well known that the English spar- 

 row is not friendly toward other birds, 

 often driving! them from their nests and 

 even going so far as to destroy both these 

 and their young. 



Upon one occasion a sparrow took 

 possession of the partially completed nest 

 of a pair of martins, in process of con- 

 struction, beneath the eaves of a farm- 

 house. When the martins returned with 

 their load of mud for its walls, the spar- 

 row, intrenched within, drove them away 

 with scolding cries and fluttering wings, 

 resisting all their attempts at dislodg- 

 ing him. Time after time the attack was 

 renewied, all to no avail. There he was 

 and there he proposed to remain. 



But the plucky martins were not so 

 easily vanquished. They retired for a 

 season, only to renew the attack with in- 

 creased vigor, waging a battle long and 

 fierce. Finally, however, they seemed to 

 understand that their enemy had the bet- 

 ter of them, and bent their energies to- 

 ward vengeance. Carrving mud in their 

 beaks, they built a wall about the spar- 

 row as he sat in possession of their home, 

 surrounding him so cotn(pletely that he 

 was made a prisoner in the very place 

 where he had taken forcible possession. 

 And there they left him to his fate. 



A pair of robins selected a nesting 

 place in the fork of a maple, standing 

 quite near a house, the chamber windows 

 of which looked down directly into it. 

 No sooner had they began to carry sticks 

 for the foundation, than a pair of crow 

 black birds, with malicious intent, 

 pounced upon it and scattered the sticks 

 in every direction, taking advantage of 

 the absence of the owners of the nest to 

 carry out their mischief. Time after 

 time did the robins repair the damage 

 and bee:in afresh their work of construc- 

 tion. No sooner were they out of sight 

 than the black birds tore the material out 

 of the tree, seemingly working in great 

 haste to complete their depredation be- 



fore the robins' return. 



Stormy encounters, amounting to 

 pitched battles sometimes, ensued when 

 the maurauders were caught by the irate 

 home makers in the very act of tearing 

 to fragments the work they were toiling 

 so painfully to complete. Not one day 

 only, but several elapsed, and still the 

 battle continued, the interested specta- 

 tors though sympathetic were powerless 

 to help the rightful owners of the home. 

 The black birds seemingly did not want 

 the nest for themselves. Thev merely ob- 

 jected to the robins building there. At 

 last, to the great relief of the red-breasts, 

 their enemies gave up the fight and al- 

 lowed themj to build the nest. This they 

 did, laying their eggs and rearing their 

 young without further annoyance. 



Many a fat angle worm does the robin • 

 get in the spring of the year, pulling them 

 out of the ground where the bright eyes 

 spy them close to the surface, or partly 

 protruding therefrom. A full-grown 

 robin has been seen to thus capture and 

 swallow a round dozen of earth worms 

 inside of ten minutes. 



One day a fledgling was hopping across 

 the lawn, the mother bird alert and 

 watchful, not far awav. She had been 

 feeding it, but evidently its hunger had 

 not yet been appeased, for it hopped to 

 her side and began to make the coaxing 

 noise heard when in the nest as the par- 

 ent approaches with food. The mother 

 bird paused a moment, looked about her, 

 then hopping to one side a short dis- 

 tance, she planted her feet squarely upon 

 the ground, caught one end of a worm 

 in her beak and commenced to pull. The 

 worm, which was a large one, was not 

 easily dislodged and tug as hard as she 

 could, she could not complete her cap- 

 ture. Evidently the worm was too long. 

 She fairly tipped over backward in her 

 eflfort, yet without avail. All at once, 

 and as quick as a flash, so as to give it 

 no chance to get away, she let go her 

 hold and seizing the worm farther down, 

 drew it triumphantly forth and gave it 

 to her expectant offspring. 



E. E. RocKwooD. 



19 8 



