52 Bird Life Stories 



In the vicinity of Washington, District of Columbia, nidifi- 

 cation commences about the middle of May, and full sets of 

 eggs may be looked for the last week in this month, while in 

 central New York, Connecticut, Wisconsin, southern Minne- 

 sota, etc., they usually nest from eight to fourteen days later. 



Few of our native birds build a more ingeniously con- 

 structed nest than the Baltimore Oriole, and it must always be 

 considered a most interesting example of bird architecture, 

 taking time, intelligence and good judgment to construct. 

 From five to eight days are usually required for its completion. 



Some nests show a great superiority over others in general 

 make-up and workmanship; these are perhaps the product of 

 old and experienced birds, while the younger ones, from lack 

 of judgment, often select poor sites, or else secure their nests 

 carelessly to the supporting twigs, so that many are destroyed 

 before the young reach maturity. 



Ordinarily the nest of the Baltimore Oriole is pensile, and 

 is usually suspended by the rim from the extremities of 

 several slender branches to which it Is attached. 



Others, besides being fastened by the rim, which Is always 

 neat and smoothly finished, are attached to some perpendicu- 

 lar fork or limb by one of the sides, thus steadying the nest 

 and preventing it from swinging too much during the heavy 

 winds. In a truly pensile nest some of the eggs are occa- 

 sionally cracked by the violent swaying of the slender twigs to 

 which It is attached, while if fastened at the side this occurs 

 very rarely, unless the entire limb is torn off. Both sexes 

 assist in nest building. 



The materials used for the framework consist principally 

 of decayed fibers, such as those of the Indian hemp, the silk 

 of the milkweed {Asclepias), nettles {Uriicd), and when located 

 near human habitations, of horsehair, bits of twine, yarn, strips 



