Concord, Mass.
1909.
March 23
  Another cold, rough, windy day. It seemed quite
as raw as yesterday but the temperature was really higher
(28 degrees min. 44 degrees max). The sky was absolutely cloudless and
the air remarkably clear, from sunrise to sunset.
  Birds were somewhat more in evidence than yesterday
yet very scarce and for the most part silent with no
evidence of any migratory movement from the south.
  About 9 o'clock this morning I found a pair
of White-bellied Nuthatches in the Barrett run. They seemed
to be interested in a small, round, knot-like hole in a wild
apple tree by the path. The male peeped into it a number of
times and the female entered it once, remaining inside for
at least half-a-minute. These, no doubt, are the birds
that have bred on the Farm every year since I have
owned it. I have never actually found their nest
although I have often seen them looking into holes
before and twice taking building material into them
but afterwards the hole was abandoned for some
inscrutable reason before the eggs were laid.
Pair of White-bellied Nuthatches inspecting hole for nest!