242 



RECREATION 



ceeded in dividing it into two pieces. 

 She swallowed one half and apparent- 

 ly waited until that had digested be- 

 fore partaking of the remainder. Did 

 anyone ever observe a feathered sum- 

 mer resident using its claws as hands? 



The domestic life of the nuthatches 

 is a truly ideal one. On a day in early 

 spring they go together and select the 

 nesting site, and then begins the ar- 

 duous labor of chiseling out the deep 

 cradle. It is usually some distance 

 from the ground, and both birds take 

 turns in working, congratulating each 

 other in lively twitterings as they labor. 

 When the last chip has been carried 

 away, a warm lining is made of feath- 

 ers, moss or anything which Mrs. 

 Hatch considers soft enough. While 

 the patient bird broods over her eggs, 

 her mate keeps her well supplied with 

 the daintiest tidbits he can discover, and 

 is always hovering near that she may 

 not become too lonely. 



The little ones leave the nest early 

 and spend some days marketing on 

 their home tree before venturing forth 

 into the wide world. 



We had only seen one red-breasted 

 hatch, who always came to feed 

 alone or with the chickadees, but 

 shortly after Valentine's Day he dis- 

 appeared, only to> appear again two 

 days later with a charming wife, a bit 

 plumper than himself and with a breast 

 a shade or two lighter. These little 

 red-breasts had none of the aggres- 

 siveness of their larger cousins and 

 were very gentle and mild-mannered. 



RED-BREASTED NUTHATCH 



