Waterbury Democrat., 1900-10-25
BIRDS AS ARCHITECTS.
Their wonderfuz rnEsnuity In Nest B1iIdi4g-Innacnce by En-
 v1ronment.

| a 4A4cprefpl .examination of a bird s nest will convince anyone that it is Q WorkSof art. One cannot help wonder ing at the ingenuity displayed by its architect. How carefully a bird adapts itself to environment is we'll illustrated by endless examples: The rCd-winced blackbirds, whose nests are usually built anon. reeds, fags or bushes, make their nests very much deeper when the place selected is sub ject to very strong winds than in more sheltered spots; and then, az 2 future safeguard, the: mouth of the nest contracts SO that the eggs will not fall out when the flags are swayed by tho wind. .. Soma birds readily avail themselves of new and favorable conditions says A. nadclyTs Du.more, inE"Bird Homes"
 "The phoebe formerly built it's nest exclusively on rocks, but now that houses and bridges arc 10 be found throughout the country, this tird hax, to 9 great extent, changed it's former custom, and it now builds nests on almost any sort ot structure built by man. This also applies to the barn swallow, while the chimney swift has taken possession ot eur s6iuneys and almost forsaksA the hollow tree trunks, il which but . few years ago they built in large co!Cnisz. . Tk0 quail and many other birds, such as the meadow lark and some of the sparrows, often arch their homes over with either the growing vegetation surrounding the nest or with dry ma tsrial brought for the purpose; and in some caSss they build covered paths or entrances.
 ''TEs crested fycatchsr often makes uss of snakeskin in ths construction of it's nest, which occupies Q hole in 9 tree. The ruby throated hum- mincbird saddles it's nest on a high branch and covers it with hchten, so that it resembles an excrcScence on tho branch. The Baltimore orioic hangs his wcll-built nest, Q masterpie of bird architecture, on tho SXtrsmo end of an overbangipg branch, where nothing but g winged enemy can reach it. To guard against these, tho nest is made so thSt it looks something like hornets neS., with which the jays, crows or hawks would not care to interfere. Tks eggs of the ssltsd kinGfEhsr are placed in . kols, Gfts0 six or eight feet dssp, sXcAvated in . bank by the birds themselves, after ss much as two weeks work. The tailor birdz sew the edges of 2 large, crowi- 2 leaf round the nest, so that it is absolu.e- ly hidden from view. The bower birda use queer materials, such as bones, pieces of metal, ste."
 The Baltimore eriols is one of the most ingenious of bird architects, and employs any material that is acces- siblc. String, hair, grasses and plant fbcrs arc often used, and one bird lover tells of nest made completely of silk thrown from tks windows of Q neighbcring silk factory.
 In tho bright pluma.ed birds of the temperate region ths brilliant color ing is usually localized. The common bluebird has head, back, wings and tail of bright tsst, purSSt blue, but the breast is russst and tho under parts white. The all-blus birds are the in digo bird and the grosbsak.
 Yellow is a common color on parts of the plumags, but only ono yellow bird even apprsximatss fredom from other colors. That is the little yellow warbler, which has but slight mark ;ings of russst and olive. The carinal grosbsak, the summer rsdkird and the scarlet t1naGsr are almost wholly red. The first has 2 ring of black around tho bill, the second has wings shading to brown, and the third has black wings and tail, while the rest of his plumage is of the most brilliant scar let.