73
Lake Umbagog.
1897.
May 24
(No 3)
  The entrance to the Whistler's nest was a vertical slit
apparently formed by the elongation (and to some extent widening)
through decay of a Flicker's hole. It did not look as if a
Duck of any kind could possibly squeeze into it (the edges
were jagged in places) but two large tufts of down clinging
to the trunk a few inches from the hole assured Watrous
that there was an occupied nest although he could start
nothing by rapping on the trunk this morning; nor did
a most vigorous hammering with our &[sic] paddle hilts when
we reached the tree this afternoon produce any signs
of life above. But when Watrous began to climb the stub
- indeed immediately after the first stab of his climbing
irons - a female Whistler emerged from the hole and
flying rather feebly & clumsily at first with legs & feet
hanging down, made off over the Lake calling kur-ruck,
kur-ruck, kur-ruck in deep, gutteral tones. She alighted
about 200 yards off and after swimming about for awhile
flew still further away. Watrous this morning saw
five Whistlers together in the water not far from this
nest. They seemed to be females, the fifth being a fine
old drake. (I should add that when the female flew
from the hole this afternoon her wings whistled audibly
but with a hollow tone something like that of a
humming top. According to my experience it is unusual
for a Whistler to sit as closely as did this bird.
Ordinarily they leave the nest before you can run your
boat alongside the stub & I have never before known
one to fail to start at the first thump on the foot
of the stub.
[margin]Nest of
a "Whistler"[/margin]
  This nest had 12 eggs; three were fresh, the others representing
every stage of incubation up to about 7 or 8 days.