93 



I have always believed that nests of this hummingbird 

 contain a greater amount of labor, are better made and are 

 very much more beautiful than nests of any other kinds of 

 birds. I have had many excellent opportunities to watch 

 them during their home-building. 



One day I saw a "hummer" buzzing about under some 

 ferns, within a few inches of the ground; she was gathering 

 the soft, downy wool that sheathes the young fronds and is 

 often left hanging to the stems of older ferns. When she 

 had a tiny load of this in her slender bill, she whizzed away 

 with it; fortunately I was able to keep track of her rapid 

 flight and saw her land on a limb about twenty feet above 

 ground. She had just commenced lier work, barely enough 

 of the future nest showing to be seen with tlie field glasses. 



She was quite industrious but she only gathered tinj' 

 loads at a time and it took her quite a long while to find the 

 material, so that building was a very slow operation. At 

 the end of three days, the walls of the nest had just com- 

 menced to assume a recognizable form. 



Sometimes she brought little masses of whiter, finer ma- 

 terial even than the "wool," probably cobwebs; this evident- 

 ly held the balance of the material more closely together, 

 I never saw her mate anywhere near the nest during its 

 construction, but he did appear and help defend the home 

 after the little "hummers" appeared. 



The decorating of the outside of the nest was the most 

 interesting part of the work. She seemed to be exceedingly 

 particular about the appearance of each piece of lichen that 

 was glued in place. Often she would buzz up and down and 

 around the trunks of several trees before she could find a 

 piece to her liking. 



When finished, she had a bit of bird architecture of which 

 she was justly proud. Greens predominated in the lichens 

 that grew on this tree, and all the pieces that were on her 

 nest were of the same shade. Without seeing her going to 

 it, nobody would have suspected that the little tuft of moss 

 was other than a natural growth on the limb. 



