4 THE AULD, U'B.ON: 3B UC bei 
scolded a few times with a series of gutteral chur notes. After both had 
watched for a few minutes from various places, never in plain sight, one 
of them entered the nest, first perching on its northwest edge, then hopping 
to the east edge and into the nest facing northwest. While sitting it 
moved its head slightly but frequently up and down. 
The next evening I was present from 7:00 until 7:20, when the sun 
was setting. By softly whistling a little tune as I crawled to my place I 
succeeded in allaying the bird’s fears so that she stayed in her nest; after- 
wards she even allowed me much closer than usual before she finally left. 
The mate was neither seen nor heard. 
During an hour in the afternoon of the 14th (3:45 to 4:45) the bird 
left and returned two or three times. Once she flew quickly down into the 
briers, and a few moments later I realized that a black and white cat was 
watching me from a distance of two or three rods. No doubt the bird had 
seen the cat approaching and had left to avoid betraying the presence of 
the nest. I drove the cat away. During one of the absences of the female 
her mate came twice to examine the eggs and once got into the nest, but 
was quickly off again. While at the nest he swallowed something he had 
brought in his bill. He was not so quick or agile as his mate in entering 
the nest, but both birds always faced in the same direction, toward the 
union of the fork. When the female was in the nest there was noticeable 
a slight, regular up and down motion of her head, which I attributed to 
her breathing. She was ever alert, frequently lifting her head a little 
higher above the rim to look over, especially if some sound or motion called 
for investigation. If I moved she watched me but she seemed fairly assured 
so long as I kept seven or eight feet away. During this afternoon hour I 
was serenaded only sparingly. The vireo sang’ sometimes but his musical 
sentences were detached. Once he sang at some distance from home. . 
Two of the eggs, which had remained intact through the 15th, hatched 
before 7:00 P.M. of the 16th and the parents were sitting more closely than 
usual. The remaining egg had grayed and darkened. 
The next evening, at 6:10, there was no trace of the unhatched egg 
in the nest or on the ground. One of the naked nestlings was on its back. 
A parent brought a very small green delicacy (larva?), held in the tip of 
the bill, gave it to the young, and then examined and watched the nestlings 
for a few moments before entering the nest to brood. Two minutes later 
this bird left and the other came with a small brownish insect, gave it to 
a nestling, and brooded for six or seven minutes. The latter parent, which 
I took to be the mother, showed some white margins on the tail while 
sitting in the nest, and had a way of erecting the feathers on its forehead 
and crown when feeding and brooding. The other parent did not erect the 
head feathers or show white margins; but its folded tail appeared slightly 
indented when sitting, due to slight separation of the central feathers. Soon 
after the one had left, the other brought food and brooded until I was 
preparing to leave, which was about fifteen minutes later. Upon disturbing 
the nest while the parent was off, I heard the scolding, wrenlike, chur. The 
male did not sing during my thirty-minute stay. Both parents, when brood- 
