I92I. 



BuRKiTT. — Song and Nesting of Birds. 



7 



TO. One common notion about bird song seems, at 

 least in these cases, to be just the one thing 

 we can safely deny, namely, that the male sings 

 chiefly to please a sitting mate. 



The (ireater Whitethroat is the most interesting example 

 of the above. His song ceases almost entirely shortly 

 after the nest is begun, and as the nesting is started more 

 quickly after arrival than any bird I know we should have 

 very little of this song were it not for the supply of mateless 

 males. As the weeks pass these latter acquire mates, but 

 great numbers of them may go on mateless and singing 

 past the end of May and all through June and well into 

 July. Whenever one gets a mate he almost at once ceases 

 to be heard. But if some accident occurs to the nest or 

 the female, one hears the male start singing again. A 

 greatly added interest attaches to the mateless males 

 because they occupy their time building a series of cock 

 nests. Both parents seem to feed the 3^oung equally. 



The mated Grasshopper Warbler seems to cease early 

 to sing, and does not sing again till after the first brood 

 is fledged. Both parents seem to feed the young equally. 

 A certain prolongation of the earlier song seems to be due 

 to still mateless males. 



The Garden Warbler will either stop singing altogether 

 or sing seldom and low after the female begins to sit. 

 (There may be some exceptions to this.) He may from 

 time to time give a few notes when she is off the eggs. 



A beautiful low rendering of his song, almost a w^hisper, 

 is a certain indication of the close proximity of the nest 

 and probably fresh eggs. Any strong not -shy singers 

 after early in June will probably be found to be still mateless. 

 I have watched such birds, which do not give t±ie usual 

 mated alarm, and with which I could detect no female. 

 These provide a certain prolongation of the song. But 

 such are few and the main run of the song of this bird is 

 the shortest I know, lasting barely a month in my experience. 

 A lot of small beginnings of nests are found in the bushes 

 around any of these songsters, and are probably made b}^ 

 the male. I only once caught such building in the act, 

 but at that time I was not aware of the habit and so did 



