JOHN S. CAIRNS. 137 



nest in from four to six days if the weather is favorable. 

 She is usually accompanied by the male, which, however, does 

 not assist her in any way. The nests are never placed over 

 three feet from the ground ; usually about eighteen inches; 

 one I examined was only six inches. Ridgway, in his 

 Manual, says : " Nests on trees in high woods, 20 to 50 

 feet or more from the ground." Such is not the case here. 

 Coues, in his Key, says : " Nests in bushes, close to the 

 ground." 



Four eggs complete the set, often only three. They show 

 great variation in shape, size, and marking ; some are well 

 rounded, while others are quite elongated. 



The female is very alert, and glides off the nest at 

 the slightest noise. This I think, is caused by fear of 

 animals, as she shows little fear of man and often returns to 

 the nest in a few moments. This is characteristic of nearly 

 all the birds breeding on these mountains ; they often allow 

 themselves to be handled while covering their young. The 

 tragedies of these little creatures' lives would fill a small 

 volume. The wild cat {Lynx rufus), the raccoon {Procyon 

 lotor), and many smaller carnivorous animals are abundant, 

 and various reptiles make their home in the cliffs. All these 

 prey on the young, and cattle ranging on these mountains 

 break off many of the shrubs and weeds that contain nests. 

 Furious windstorms, accompanied by rain and hail, sweep 

 over their breeding grounds, chilling both eggs and young, 

 and sending many a forest giant crashing to the earth. The 

 birds seem to take these things into consideration and 

 usually select a nesting-site sheltered by protecting logs or 

 cliffs. A nest found the past season was sustained merely 

 by one slender stem, as the rest of the supports had been 

 broken off by a falling branch. The weight of the female 

 caused this nest to hang almost horizontally. A fresh egg 

 lay on the ground underneath. The female must have passed 

 the entire period of incubation in nearly a perpendicular 

 position, as the nest contained two newly-hatched young. 



