THE CUCKOO. 139 



Sea-Eagles and Buzzards, and Ospreys, were 



there — 

 Those who give of their nests to the Grakles a 



share.* 



nor, as far as is known, does she nourish her offspring. The 

 eggs are generally deposited in the nest of the Hedge- Sparrow, 

 and are hatched, and the young provided for by this little bird. 

 The cuckoo is not known to lay more than one egg in any one 

 nest. The eggs are reddish-white, thickly spotted with black- 

 ish-brown, and smaller than those of a blackbird; they vary, 

 however, occasionally, both in size and colour. 



The cuckoo does not invariably lay her egg in the hedge- 

 sparrow's nest, although I have never seen it in any other: it 

 has been found in that of the Reed-Bunting, XheLinneVs, and the 

 Wagtail's ; and, from the circumstance of Red-backed-Skrikes 

 being seen busily engaged in feeding a young cuckoo, it is 

 conjectured by Messrs. Sheppard and Whitear, that the 

 cuckoo occasionally lays her egg in that bird's nest. 



It has been stated in a popular work, that, from the egg of 

 the cuckoo being small for a bird of its size, the hedge-sparrow 

 has no suspicion of the intrusion. But the eggs of the hedge- 

 sparrow are, nevertheless, much smaller than those of the cuckoo, 

 and are light-blue without a spot ; it is quite improbable, there" 

 fore, that so different an egg would not be discovered. Besides, 

 it seems very likely that the cuckoo would be seen by the hedge- 

 sparrow in her nest. The deception is altogether incredible. 

 We have no means of ascertaining the reasons for the hedge- 

 sparrow's permitting the egg of the cuckoo to remain in her nest, 

 no more than we have for the fact that the Fishivg-Hawk per- 

 mits the Grakle to build its nest in the suburbs of its own cita- 

 del. We must, at present, be contented with stating the facts 



It was formerly suspected, that the hedge-sparrow herself 



* See Note (*), article Haliaelos* 



