wings, producing a noise like the roll of distant thunder. 

 On a quiet day this sound may be heard a half mile. He does 

 this to call his mate and soon the female comes flying through 

 the woods to meet him. 



The nest is a soft cushion of leaves and moss, and when 

 filled with eggs, closely resembles a hen's nest. It is difficult to 

 find because the bird covers it with leaves when she goes away 

 from it. The young can run about as soon as they are hatched 

 and when ten days old they begin to fly. 



If you come suddenly upon a mother bird and her little 

 ones, she will sound an alarm note to them and then flutter 

 and limp away as though her wing or leg were broken. Follow 

 her a short distance and she will rise and sail off with perfect 

 ease. Turn now to find her chicks and they are nowhere to be 

 seen. At their mother's signal they squatted on the ground or 

 dived under the leaves out of sight. They are so near the color 

 of dead leaves that they can rarely be found. Instead of try- 

 ing to find them, hide yourself and await the return of the 

 mother. Soon a few call notes from her will unite the family 

 and, as they move away together, you are glad that you did not 

 capture one of those little fluffy balls of yellow. 



BIRD NOTES 



31 



