the posts of the cage. Rhody scarcely left the place during the day and was given no mice, but he ate meat. August 6th. The principal events of this day centered about a young gopher snake about 18 (?) inches long. This snake was taken into the cage for the benefit of O and C. Rhody saw it being carried there and was at once intensely interested. He came close to the wire to observe events. O and C would not approach it nearer than about 2 feet, circling around it in tense postures with raised heads and tails, but remained silent. (I got some motion picture shots of the action of doubtful quality. In one of them the camera is swept from the thrashers and the snake to Rhody watching through the wire). The snake was now taken out and offered to Rhody, since he was so keen about it, but he seemed to regard it now as something merely to be gazed at dispassionately. A complete reversal of attitude, for when Julio was carrying it to the cage, he had to keep Rhody from seizing it. R had had a large piece of meat about 3n hours earlier and I suspect that, in his judgment, the vacant space in his interior was too small to accommodate the reptile. I acted on this assumption, or rather, refrained from acting, as it was thought that Rhody was really hungry and here was a case where he (again) preferred something different from the food of- fered, and I wanted to see what he would do about it. So I waited. After hanging about me for a few minutes longer, he rattle-boosed and started toward the shop-yard, pausing at intervals to see if I was following. He lead all the way to the mousery and took at once the large mouse offered, downing it without ceremony, then returning to his loafing place near the loquat until it was time to saunter to the roost tree. August 7th. At about 9 A.M. I went to the cage. Both thrashers ca/me into the entry as soon as the inner door was opened: Chiisai bearing a long, thin root about 18 inches long, which he deposited upon my hands as soon as I made a "shelf" for him against the wire. Okii joined him there and the root fell to the floor. Chiisai whet down, got it and started carrying it about. I went into the inner cage and stood near the "nest". C followed, climbed up my back, jumped to the nest and placed the root carefully. He was again joined by Okii and they worked for a few minutes ineffect- ively, stopping when I returned to the entry only to follow me there and select suitable posts on my upper-works to preen . About 9:30 A.M. I returned to the cage to find Chiisai working in the nest and carrying up fresh material to it, all without guid- ance from me. He has made little showing, as nearly everything falls to the ground, but I noticed that the insulated wire, refer- ed to in earlier notes, had been returned to the nest. About 10:30 I took an old towhee nest into the cage, holding it elbow high. Chiisai flew to it immediately and began to dissect it. Okii followed and it was wrecked quickly. The object of the birds appeared to be food, not nest material. The remnants were put in "their" nest. Both birds followed and threw most of it out making no attempt to arrange as a nest. Again the object appeared to be food.