232 



LAND BIRDS 



striped plumage that at first I saw nothing. They were 

 too old to be fooled into opening their bills for food, but 

 crouched flat in fear, only their beady eyes telling me 

 they were alive. As I put down my 

 hand to take one, the four popped out 

 of the . nest with one accord so swiftly 

 that I could not see what hap- 

 pened. Then ensued a search, 

 long and painstaking, before I 

 found even one. During all 

 this time the 

 excited father 

 and mother were fol- 

 lowing me just over- 

 head in the lowest 

 branches, the " seep, seep " 

 seeming to my strained 

 imagination like "Don't, 

 don't," but not once had 

 they come to the ground. 

 The instant I espied the 

 youngster sitting placidly 

 on the ground, they seemed 

 intuitively to know it. 

 With redoubled cries they 

 flew down to him, evidently coaxing him to make 

 some effort to escape. And he did try, but I had never 

 photographed a Junco baby and this chance was too 

 good to lose, so I caught him. Soon after I found 

 two of the others. Once caught, they seemed to lose 



567 c 



" They protested with plaintive 

 calls." 



