just named he began* running up the trunk, starting at the 
very point where I had seen him disappear. It was one of 
the prettiest demonstrations of the effectiveness of 
protective coloration that I have ever witnessed. Of course 
it is possible that the Creeper found refuge in some narrow 
crevice which the Shrike could not enter and which could 
not be seen from the ground, but I do not believe that 
this was really the case. 
During the chase, the Creeper flew in the usual 
feeble vacillating manner. The Shrike, like the bird which 
I saw catch a Warbler last month, kept his tail wide¬ 
spread and did not appear to be exerting himself. He did 
not move in undulations as is the habit of Shrikes during 
ordinary flight, but flapped steadily and kept on a per¬ 
fectly level plane, looking very like a Blue Jay. It is 
singular how often Shrikes as well as Hawks fail to catch 
their prey and hov; quickly and completely they seem to 
become discouraged if the first stoop is unsuccessful. 
The pair of White-bellied Nuthatches seen at the 
bridge this morning were at the Keyes’ when I started and 
I traced their flight across the meadows as they kept a 
little in advance of me, alighting to rest a moment on the 
few trees that intervene. They are unmistakably the same 
birds which nested in the big elm at the North Bridge last 
spring. At least I am sure that the female is the same, 
