1900 
June 5 
Blue Jays 
Jt 
the nest 
of a 
Redstart 
********* 
The Redstart’s nest in the oak behind Gilbert’s cabin 
which was begun May ISth and which contained 3 eggs on June 
1st looked dishevelled last evening and as the bird had 
evidently deserted it and was beginning a new nest still 
nearer the cabin I felt sure that the eggs h:i been destroyed. 
Gilbert examined it this morning and found it empty. About 
an hour later I heard a Jay screaming and the next moment 
saw the bird coming high above the tree tops and evidently 
from a distance. It headed straight for the oak, alighted 
in the upper branches, screamed once or twice and then with 
half-closed wings dropped 12 or 15 feet to the nest where it 
perched for about half-a-minute, bending forward with its 
head turned on one side and its bill actually within the nest. 
Evidently, as it seemed tc me, it had returned in the hope 
that another egg might have been laid since its visit yester¬ 
day, for I can no longer doubt that not only a Jay but this 
particular Jay plundered the nest yesterday. Finding the 
nest empty this morning, it flew back silently in the direc¬ 
tion whence it had come. 
The Redstart seemed much disturbed by its visit 
and after it had gone she fluttered close about the old nest 
and once nearly entered it, after which she went back to the 
new one and continued to work at it through the remainder 
of the forenoon 
