The Black Tanager. 
61 
PLOCEIUAE and FRINGILLIDAE, as well as TUKDTDAE, 
STURNIDAE and other TANAURIDAE. 
The following year numerous attempts at nesting were 
made, but the hen would not build a nest, though the male 
several times brought her bents, etc.; eventually she lixcd on 
a smal' travelling-cage, from which the fi-oiit wii'es had been 
removed. The box hung against one of the internal standards 
was almost hidden by rambling sprays of a Hiawatha rose. 
Here she deposited a clutch of eggs on the bai'e wood, but all 
these were spoiled by rolling about, though two of them con- 
tained partly formed chicks; however, after she had been 
incubating for three weeks I broke the eggs with the above 
result, two had been fertile, the other was clear. 
After this I stuffed some hay in the box and did not 
go near it for a fortnight, when, on looking in, I saw she 
was again incubating, but that every vestige of hay had been 
removed from the box — again another clutch of eggs was 
spoiled. However, she absolutely refused to ljuild a nest and 
even removed such bents as her mate placed around her. Yet 
another clutch was laid under the same conditions and with a 
similar barren result; thus another season was wasted. I must 
repeat myself so far as to say that their deportment, though 
very similar, was even more charming and interesting than 
that of the previous year. 
I do not think the eggs of this s^^ecies have as yet 
been described in our Journal. The size, shape, and [)attern 
are excellently rendered in the two photographs, and it only 
remains to add that the ground colour is very pale greenish - 
blue, and the spots and markings deep black. There was 
scarcely any variation in the score or more eggs which were 
laid in my aviary. 
This brings us to their third year (1913) with me. I 
had niot a great deal of hope of ultimate success, though I could 
see the mother instmct was very keen by the way she tried 
to mother the young of other species, more particularly the 
young Grey-wLiiged Ouzels. Last season's doings were re- 
peated up to the end of May, when she insisted on assisting 
the hen Grey-winged Ouzel to incubate, the cock Black Tanager 
keeping off the male Ouzel while she was on the nest. After 
the young Ouzels were hatched she insisted on taking up to 
