68 
Field Xotcs. 
Nesting of the Waterhen. — On 26th June, 1913, while 
trout-fishing in Forge Valley, near Scarborough, I noticed a 
pair of Waterhens which, by their actions, convinced me that 
they had young ones close at hand. The birds were feeding 
round a dense bed of Water Crowfoot, which made a smooth 
green carpet on the surface of the water and covered a con- 
siderable area. At 3-30 p.m., when I passed this place, there 
was then no sign of a nest. Upon returning to the same place 
about 7 p.m., I was surprised to find the female bird busily 
engaged in constructing a nest on the centre of the bed of 
Water Crowfoot. The Waterhens in Forge Valley are used to 
numbers of people passing along the banks of the river, the 
valley being a popular pleasure resort, and are consequently 
fairly tame, ahd this particular individual showed no concern 
at my presence as I sat down upon the bank some fifteen 
yards away. The construction of the nest had apparently 
only just started, and the bird was busily occupied gathering 
bunches of the waterweed in her beak and piling it in a heap 
in the centre of the weed-bed, some six feet from the bank 
and absolutely without concealment. Having formed a rude 
heap of material, the architect climbed upon it, and with the 
aid of beak, breast, wings, and feet, proceeded to form it 
into a well-shaped nest. This being constructed to her liking, 
she went to the bank and broke off a number of green growing 
leaves of the Iris, and with these a neat lining was added. 
She then climbed into the now finished nest, and uttered a 
low note several times in succession, which brought out from 
its concealment under the overhanging boughs of an Alder 
bush a newly-born young one, which did not appear to be 
more than twentyMour hours old, if as much. This single 
young bird, which appeared to be the only one, ran over the 
surface of the weeds to the nest, but was unable to climb 
into it. The old bird therefore reached over, and seizing the 
chick gently in her beak by its neck, assisted it into the nest. 
Here the mother appeared to feed the young one with food 
brought up from her crop, but I could not quite satisfy myself 
that food did actually pass between them, although I think 
it did. After this the chick settled down beneath its mother’s 
wing, and at about 8-45 p.m. I left the pair apparently settled 
for the night. The male bird kept some distance away and 
took no part in the proceedings at any time. I saw the nest 
on the following afternoon, and evening and on several sub- 
sequent occasions, but did not see it again used. — \V. J. 
Clarke, Scarborough. 
— : o : — 
Bird Notes from liebden Bridge. — Apropos of the chang- 
ing distribution of the Long-tailed Titmouse in the West 
Riding, and of its uncommon occurrence in Upper Airedale and 
Naturalist 
