THE WOOD PIGEON IN LONDON 
87 
till the following day, when they again resumed work. This 
continued with the greatest regularity until the nest was 
completed. 
As soon as the nest was completed the birds devoted them- 
selves to the business of hatching. Every morning after the 
eggs were laid, one of the birds arrived between eight and nine 
o’clock and took up a position about ten feet from the nest, and 
upon this the one who had been hatching left immediately. The 
newly arrived bird did not go to the nest at once, but remained 
where it had alighted for nearly a minute. At the end of that 
time, and when it had apparently recovered from the fatigue of 
flight, it walked along the bough which led direct to the nest 
and, when it was within three feet of it, stopped for a quarter of 
a minute, looking all round to discover if any one was eyeing it, 
or if any danger threatened. When satisfied in this respect it 
hurried to the eggs, surveyed them with supreme satisfaction 
and then stepped upon the nest ; but it was easy to see that the 
eggs were carefully turned by the feet, before it sat down to 
impart the necessary warmth to them. Every one who has had 
experience in the management of an incubator knows that once 
a day the eggs must be taken out into a cool place ; and that 
when restoring them to the heated chamber they should be 
turned quite round. Should this cooling and turning not be 
done, artificial hatching proves a failure. Precisely the same 
thing was done by the wood pigeon before sitting down upon 
the eggs. 
The point worth noting is that the shyest of wild birds, 
having food put daily for their use during three years, have lost 
their fear of man and taken up their quarters close to a window 
whence their operations of nest-building, hatching eggs, and 
feeding their young have been carried on, quite open to observa- 
tion and in confidence of protection. The bedroom window has 
been left open all day and many persons have looked at the 
confiding sitters, without in the least disturbing their equanimity. 
On one occasion only has any interference with the order of 
things taken place. While the bird was hatching the eggs, or 
sitting on the young ones, it invariably turned its head away from 
the window as if no danger could come to it from that quarter. 
A friend having proposed to take a photograph of the nest, and as 
a back view of the bird was not considered satisfactory, it was 
found necessary to shake the window frame and tap the glass so 
as to get the sitter to turn round and give a front view of itself. 
The noise was effectual, the bird turned round to see what it all 
meant, and a snap-shot was taken : as soon, however, as this 
was done the former position was resumed. A fairly good 
picture was obtained, the lateness of the season and the conse- 
quent non-appearance of foliage having favoured the attempt. 
St. John's Wood, M. 
London. 
