744 
BIRD-LIFE, 
its mode of living is most regular, almost every hour being 
allotted to some special duty. At dawn the male flies to 
his favourite tree to coo ; at seven or eight in the morning 
he is silent, and goes to feed with his mate, that is, if she 
have no eggs or nestlings, and also to the salt-lick; at 
ten he coos again, but in a lower tone and not so 
continuously; at eleven both male and female go to 
drink; during the mid-day hours they take their siesta, 
hidden away in the top of some thickly-leaved tree; at 
two or three they again fly out to feed; at five or six the 
male coos his even-song, slakes his thirst again, and 
finally betakes himself to roost along with his partner. 
When cooing, the male is very restless : with the exception 
of taking due precautions for his own safety, his attention 
is wholly absorbed by his spouse; he has no thought 
but for her; to please her he joyously gives out his 
curious note, flies suddenly into the air clapping his 
wings, and swooping down again into the tree. The 
female rarely follows him, generally awaiting his return 
at one spot: she never gives him the slightest cause for 
jealousy, and at the same time manages to monopolise 
his attentions during pairing time; at all events, he 
vehemently pursues every rival, even though it does not 
lead to a regular pitched battle; but, no matter what the 
heat of his passion may be, he is ever on the alert against 
danger. Already, before actually pairing, both birds 
commence collecting materials for their nest, which 
latter is placed at various heights from the ground on a 
bough of a large tree, generally low down. The nest is 
composed of fir, larch, beech and birch twigs, and is more 
slovenly and badly built than perhaps that of any other 
bird. Very often the eggs may be seen from below, and 
sometimes even fall through the structure, and are broken. 
