The morning news. [volume] (Savannah, Ga.) 1887-1900, 1893-03-19
INGENIOUS BIRDS NESTS.
Ono of the Most Curious Structures Ia
the Mud Hens Floating Home.
From the Christian TIuea


Up in one Of the river valleys not many
miles distant from San Diego, Cal are
many water blackbirds, which weave
unique nests among the eules A specimen
OF unusual design which I discovered not
long since was bound about with meshes to
the upright tule stems, laced over, under,
in and out, in the most intricate manner
until tbs little basket-shaped receptacle
was of the desired size. The whole was
then rooted with "a second basket-shaped
structure, likewise OF tule flbers,
stretched across. The entire work.
manship was most perfect, and that
small canopy cop proved very effect
i've IN shutting of the SUMS rays. In this
river valley | recently made acquaintance
with the mud hen Of the Grebe family.
had met her before, but never had oppor-
tunltY to study her, and knowledge OF her
habits is exceedingly interesting, Here
under the trees on q little laguna's bank,
have watched for hours as she had been
swimming, diving, splashiug, darting, fiut-
tering and scattering foam from her lifted
wings, and budding her young up on the
bank to eat grass in the sun. She has no
beauty, but those tiny oRnary-colored mud
chickens, tipped with soft down, are rather
pretty.
The mud hens nest is a weedy, reedy,
hbrous structure. composed mostly Of dead,
gray ends of tules and miscellaneous mat
ter, and is usually placed far out from
shore, without anchorage, where 1t drifts to
and fro, grading its eggs easily. 1t pre-
sents to the eye simply the semblance Of a
mass of wasting vegetation. One who
knows birds we'll, and who has made them
a study from these same trees on the
laguna's bank, tells me that he has many
times waded out to search for a merit and
espied it only when gweepIng away with his
hand what be supposed to be accumulated
rubbish Of leaves, but that proved
the cradles counterpane, with which
the careful mother had shielded her
treasure. Here eggs, OF young,
deposited on the bottom, we're usually MALT
submerged, the water OoZiDg through every
interstice as through a sieve, and no sign OF
a parent bird near Retreating to distance
it was often necessary to watch closely and
through a glass, when presently the mother
grebe might be discovered sailing I'D
shyly settling down TO breast its contents
When they were evidently sufficiently
warmed she covered them again carefully
with more debris and sailed away as swiftly
among the water weeds
The orioles is one Of the daintiest nests
found in California trees. One has been
recently built by an aesthetic couple in q
magnificent fan palm in private grounds,
where great care is taken not to brighten
the birds away. This penFile airy thing il
of the pale. straw -colored flbers OF the
palm, and is a great beauty. Another
parent pair have chosen q rollea banana
leaf for a resting place. This has been
stitched tightly across from side to side
something in ball-cover fashion, with palm
threads. The sewing implements must
have been dexterously handled, theIresuIt
is SO trim and complete. No more cunning
sight can be imagined than the heads Of
the baby bird peering out from the lance
shaped rolls Of this living nest on the green
banana tree