1638. He always uses it as an intermediate point in going to and from the nest. He has become so smitten with it that he now likes to sit on it as a regular preening and observation point. He did not sing today at all and had no mice. He ate the meat in the cage about 9 A.M. About 3 P.M. I found him in there with a small alligator lizard, quietly holding it. A large salamander was tossed to him to see what he would do about it; the expectation being that he would eat the lizard, then take the salamander, and that is what happened. The salamander received full honors, in- cluding presentation at the mirror. It was finally eaten about 4:30 on the cross-bar roost above referred to. He did not come down from there until nearly 5 o'clock. At that time I happened to uncover another salamander (about 9 inches long) so offered it to him. I did not think he would take it this late in the day, especially after just having eaten the other one; but he did, beating it to death on a rock--a long job--then gobbling it without ceremony. Either his tastes have changed, or I have been in error in assigning a low rank to these "water-dogs" on his list of preferred comestibles. About 5:15 he started for his old house for the night. Thus far (after nearly four years) it would appear that a nest is not used as a sleeping place. His old house might be considered the only exception; but I do not think it is regarded by him as a nest primar- ily. It was used as a sleeping place long before he added any embell ishments. We might even go so far as to assume that the fact he s sleeps in it throws doubts upon its ever having been regarded by him as a nest, except perhaps in one of his harmonics. Mar. 10th. (Sunrise 6:30, sunset 6:11). Storm not yet arrived. The storm last night was still 500 miles to the west-south- west. The only evidence of it here, so far, is a strong wind straigh from the north (8 A.M.). Partly cloudy. At 8:15 A.M. Neo was sitting quietly in his nest; N2 was in the bushes nearby. Neo still lines nest. At 9:15 he was picking up a few soap-root fibres from an old towhee nest that I had scattered about; and taking them to the nest; so he does not regard the nest as completed. N2 was on hand, but not helping. Rhody's "harmonic" not faded out entire- ly. At this time Rhody was selecting a sheaf of his favored weed from the miscellaneous offering I had prepared for him at his take- off point--so, his present "harmonic" has not yet faded out. On coming down after delivering his load inside he ran off quickly and disappeared as if on a definite, predetermined errand. I thought it was for more supplies, but in a minute, he came running back again empty handed, came directly to me and stood looking at me. I did nothing, purposely. He boomed and edged up the bank behind me; he wanted a mouse. We reached the tool-house in a dead heat. Here he cried and was rewarded. This mouse was needed for display purposes. This proved to be all the food he wanted from human hands during the day, and also the last work seen on the nest. The north wind died out during the forenoon and no rain fell until about 10 P.M.; the storm appears to have spent itself largely before arrival. Being otherwise engaged, little effort was made to keep in touch with the birds the rest of the day, other than to verify oc- casionally the presence of Rhody and the two thrashers.