1182. unoccupied that day. Counting that day as the first day of in- cubation--probably, and yesterday as a full day of incubation, we have 14 days of incubation, not counting any of today. This checks out reasonably well with past experience. 8:45 This thrasher nest was built in the worst wind-gap on the place, as I recognized at the time. Today we have the first strong north wind since the nest was built. I just went out to see how the birds were faring and found both birds (parents) in the nest. Applying "double heat". This has been observed before under similar circumstances, for example: Brownie and Greenie in the first nest. 9:15 This was kept up for a half hour. A screen was then placed which effectively shuts off the north wind from the nest and its occupants. The nearest point of the screen to the nest is about 8 inches. With all the disturbance incident to its placig Brownie kept his place. 1:00 P.M. Rhody is sitting in 5-36. A few minutes ago he was given a young rat which went through the regulation ordeal. With slight hesitation Rhody took it up to No.5 and ate it. This seems to be the sign of the slackening in his regard for No.1, consequent upon his preoccupation with N.5, that I have been await- ing. He worked on 5 most of the forenoon. When it was seen that he was going over the fence to the north for material, a supply was gathered for him and distributed on the ground about the nest- tree. It was accepted at once. On one of his upward journeys in the tree with a an awkwardly- shaped and unruly branch his flight across an 8 foot gap was interfered with and he narrowly missed falling. The branch fell to the ground and he came down to recover it, but when he took hold of it, something about if frightened him, so he retreated with raised crest and in some excitement. He went back to it warily, again seized it and ran a few feet with it, only to become frightened again, and dropped it. He then watched it as if it were a living thing capable of doing him harm, but tackled it again with the same effect. It was then abandoned. Probably most of us have had similar experiences in handling springy objects that have a sort of malicious ability to fight back at us and can ap- preciate Rhody's predicament. He continued to work well during the rest of the afternoon, occasionally showing a twig at the mirror, and at times rest- ing in the nest. From about 5:30 to 6 P.M. (after which I left him for a time) he sat quietly in the nest as if he were to stay there for the night. However, he did not, nor was he found later in any of his accustomed night-roosts long after his usual bed-time. During the day he had not been seen to visit any of the other ests. May 7th. At about 7 A.M. Rhody was again busy at No.5, working diligently up to 11:30, when he went off for a stroll through the garden, examine d other trees, fussed with b-anches in them, stared into open windows of the house, then went to the roof for a long period of gazing off over the Bay and the intervening territory. He was not seen again until 5:10 P.M., when he suddenly appear- ed at the cage for meat and inspection of the magpies. Presumably