Not at All Satisfied

Evening Grosbeaks Tina nor Cherree were not at all satisfied with the nesting material first given them. Twigs of various kinds were picked up and discarded; none seemed to suit. It was then suggested by Mrs. Speirs that I try supplying them with the same kinds of material they use in their far northern home. I collected brittle pine twigs, and ripening shepherd's purse, from which I stripped the seed heads. These, cut into six-inch lengths, were scattered on the ground with the pine twigs. Then building really began. Cherree had been with me many years, yet she had not forgotten the essentials of nest building. Later I supplied the pair with many fine, thread-like rootlets of shrubs, and these they used for lining. The nests of both pairs were finished. In each the first egg was laid.

The small gates were opened, and soon all four birds found their way out. Excitement was rife; incessant calls to one another were heard as they explored many trees and the wooded ravine. For an hour or so the new freedom was enjoyed, then Tina returned to her nest, while her mate, Vesper, and Tana with Cherree explored farther afield. Then disaster! Vesper failed to return. Did a sharp-shinned hawk, suddenly, like a bolt from the blue, streak with terrific speed from the woods? We do not know; but Tina had a mate no more.

Rarely do these hawks nest in the vicinity of the aviary, but it was now evident that a pair had located within hunting distance, as Josie the mother bluebird, and Cher, the old rose-breasted grosbeak, were taken. Continued liberty for the grosbeaks was now out of the question, at least for the season. Tina's gate was closed. A little later 'Tana and Cherree returned to their nest, and their gate, too, was closed. Our experiments would, for this year, have to be carried on under the old and hitherto unsuccessful conditions. Three more eggs were laid in each nest. Of course we hoped that Tina's would hatch even though the last three were laid after Vesper had disappeared. But Patsy, the female cowbird, was determined to give Tina another egg to take care of. All the cowbird's spare time-she had plenty-was spent trying to find an opening in the mesh large enough to squeeze through.

Her persistence was rewarded, for at last she found a broken wire-it took us hours to find it, later. We found one of Tina's broken eggs on the ground, and Patsy inside, no, not the egg-the compartment. Anxious days followed on account of the sharpshinned hawks; the fear of prowling cats. Yet, with all the anxiety and the seemingly never-ending care of this busiest season of the year, we had beauty at its best; beauty of both sight and sound.