214 



BAHAMA BIRD-LIFE 



ing pan" was worse than the "fire" as the enraged owner, 

 with bristling feathers, furiously assailed them with open 

 bill, sometimes taking hold. At these times, and whenever 



the birds were alarmed, 

 they gave utterance to 

 hoarse, raucous screams 

 or screeches, though, as 

 a rule they were com- 

 paratively silent. 



The Boobies' nests 

 on Cay Verde were 

 usually a slight hollow 

 in the ground with 

 often a scanty lining 

 or rim of dried grasses, 

 but in some instances 

 even this humble prep- 

 aration for housekeep- 

 ing was lacking and the 

 eggs were laid without 

 pretense of nest. 

 About ninety-eight per cent of the Boobies nesting on 

 Cay Verde had young, some of which were newly hatched 

 while a few were on the wing, but the largest number were 

 beginning to acquire flight feathers. Thirty-five nests were 

 found containing eggs, of which twenty-one held two eggs, 

 while in fourteen there was but one ; but possibly in some, if 

 not most of these, another egg would have been laid. Two 

 eggs, therefore, was the rule, a statement confirming pre- 

 viously recorded observations on the nesting habits of this 

 species. On the other hand, two young was the exception. 

 ( )f seven hundred and forty nests counted by Dr. Mayer on 

 the east side of the Cay, only two containing two young, and 

 both pairs were well grown and approximately the same 

 size. 



Examination of the eg^s contained in sets of two showed 



Booby Twins 



