204 DENTIROSTRES. 



or three times, whereas, his transferrence of the insect from 

 the parent to the little ones was witnessed hundreds of 

 times. 



The young Fly-catchers were never seen to make any at- 

 tempt at feeding themselves, nor did the robin give them any 

 of his own food, namely, the German paste or worms, with 

 which the cage was constantly supplied ; neither do we re- 

 member that the little birds were ever seen to drink from the 

 water fountain. They usually remained upon a perch, side by 

 side, and at night nestled close together, with the robin 

 beside them. 



For above six weeks the parent Fly-catchers continued to 

 attend the little ones, from four or five o'clock in the morn- 

 ing, at which time the window was purposely opened, until 

 nearly dark in the evening ; and the redbreast also remained 

 unremitting in his attention to them, until the accidental 

 death of one of the little brood induced us to give the two 

 others their liberty, fearing that, if we kept them longer they 

 would not become sufficiently able to provide for them- 

 selves before the period of their migration, and so be left to 

 perish. 



It is a question of some curiosity, whether the bees with 

 which this little family was fed were really honey-bees, as they 

 appeared to be, and we afterwards regretted that we had not 

 ascertained the fact, by intercepting one of them and exa- 

 mining it ; that they were alive and entire there is no doubt, 

 and that they were swallowed also in that state is certain. 

 Our belief that they were really honey-bees is strengthened 

 by the animosity of cottagers towards this little bird, which 

 has universally the credit of visiting their bee stalls and pur- 

 loining the bees from the door of the hive. Another corro- 

 borating circumstance in favour of their being honey-bees is, 

 that Fly-catchers abound in places where lime-trees are nume- 

 rous, which trees are much visited by those insects, as we have 



