1905 
May 14 4 ' 
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Bird 
eating 
petals of 
aggie, 
blossoms 
1905 
May 15 
The apple tre® at the Farm were in full bloom to-day. 
On one of them we found a party of 5 Cedar Birds (these, by 
the way, are also new to my season's list here) all of which 
were busily engaged in picking off and devouring the petals 
of the blossoms. I watched them at close range (about 20 
feet) for fully 15 minutes. During this time each bird must 
have eaten a dozen or more petals. These were sometimes 
swallowed whole (not without some difficulty), sometimes 
torn into halves before being swallowed. As the birds re¬ 
mained nearly motionless the whole time, simply bending down 
and taking the petals within easy reach without exercising any 
apparent choice, I was convinced that they were eating only 
the petals and not selecting those that may have had insects 
on them. This habit of the Cedar Bird (if it be really a 
habit) is quite new to me. 
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Yesterday I saw a Chickadee near the Farm-house with 
a big ttiift of wool in its beak. To-day I followed it to its 
nest which is in a hole in the under side of a dead prong of 
an elm directly over the door-yard and fully 50 feet above 
the ground. I saw the bird enter the hole with a piece of 
wool and emerge without it. I have never before known a 
Chickadee to nest so high. 
