530 Observations on Young Humming-Birds. [June, 
a few minutes, and then away as before. She did not appear to 
mind my presence much, if at all, though I was quite near, within 
thirty feet and sometimes much less, say fifteen or seventeen, t e 
almost directly under the nest. At no time did I see the male 
bird come about the nest. Some ten days or thereabout after the 
young were first seen, their bills began to show above the edge of 
the nest, and soon after were generally plainly visible. 
On the morning of the fifteenth day after the birds were first 
seen, one of them was observed to flutter its wings just a little 
for the first time. I now judged that the birds would soon leave, 
- and accordingly passed several hours every day under the nest 
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_ Fic. 3.—Humming-bird feeding its youre’; copied from pencil drawing — 
the spot in summer of 1885. 
_ The restlessness of the young increased; their heads generally 
showed above the edge of the nest, they looked about and fre- 
quently turned round, and every now and then one would flutter 
its wings, or sometimes only spread one or both; this phase was 
very interesting to observe on account of the progressive aa 
shown, and that without leaving the nest at all. By the reese? 
_ Wednesday the restlessness had increased very much, the bu 
raising themselves somewhat and the motion of the wings bee 
very rapid, producing a gauzy, halo-like appearance ee ape 
birds. The following morning, Thursday, ż. ¢., the twentieth 02% 
3 ~ 
