1603 At about 11:10 Neo's mate headed for the west. Neo promptly followed and thrasher song gradually faded away. Rhody difficult to find. Rhody, almost simultaneously, flew to the base of the pine. I gave him a minute or two "head-start" and then spent 17 minutes looking for him in the immediate surroundings of the tree, "finding" him only when he sailed out of the pine, in which I had thought I had overlooked nothing, skirmished about a bit and then rattle-boomed sonorously when he saw me head for the tool house. When I came out carrying a live mouse by the tail, he was standing in the door waiting for me whining--this time with raised head--so I could almost look down into his gizzard! The mouse was quickly put out of commission, but after it was swallowed whole, the bird's neck and breast feathers fluttered for a few seconds in response to the last kicks of the mouse. He now retired to the orchard to rest and, when I left for the afternoon at 2:40, was still there. Neo eats Hamburg-er steak. While I was away Julio made the discovery that Neo will eat Hamburger steak--something Brownie would never do. Jan. 26th. (Sunrise 7:19, sunset 5:25). No early thrasher song heard nearby, but at 8:45, Neo squeezed through the fence from his loafing place on the bank for worms. (Clear, slight N. wind, 52° in court). Rhody was not at his post. R sings without urging. At 9:45 Rhody was at his post on the west lot and began to sing when he saw me, without inducement from me. Soon he came over the fence and followed to the orchard and stopped. I went to get meat and mouse. He sang while I was away and ran toward me when I returned, clapping his wings over his back: the first time he has been seen to make this gesture this season. He would not take the meat, so walked past me, did a short circus stunt, and went to the sage patch, where I joined him. He was again offered the meat between songs, but refused it. Neo now came and stationed himself a couple of yards away. N2 now followed and sat in the little red-wood 5 yards away, watching events. I showed Rhody the red box in which the mouse was concealed. He brightened up at once and came forward. He swallowed the mouse and then, for some reason, disgorged it, examined it and again swallowed it in a few minutes. Neo was watching all this, seemed critical of Rhody, made one short dash at him, thought better of it and came back to stand where he could watch me. Rhody started momentarily then paid no further attention to Neo. I now fed the thrashers, who had been waiting patiently, Neo again getting nearly everything. I switched the fare to Hamburger. Neo seemed as eager for this as for worms. N2 also took it, but Neo interfered repeatedly even to the extent of dropping his own meat in order to get pieces tossed to her. It was noticed that N4's upper and lower mandibles do not have the same radius of curvature, the upper being on shorter radius so that the bill closes at the tip only and daylight may be seen along the entire line of separation. At last, and for the first time, I succeeded in filling Neo up to the "gills", thanks to the Hamburger. Rhody now came back to sing on the path two yards from me, the htrashers remaining. R now considered going up into the tree overhead where he had built Nest No.? but went to the cage instead, thence to the acacia against its east wall, where he was scolded by wrentits and Bewick wrens. I then left to write this note, the two thrashers still watching me from the margin of the sage patch. First seasonal wing-clap of Rhody. Neo and mate come. Neo feints at Rhody. Peculiarity of N2's bill.