1981 Walter D. Koenig Melanerpes fomiscivorus Lower Haystack Hastings Reservation (3 May) Unfortunately, I have no idea what's become of the egg; I looked around but could not find it in the tree. Incredible. In any case, there's nothing more to watch now, so going home. (The big question is, has 8307 been following 9524, and so perhaps, not having mated with her yet, "know" that the egg wasn't fathered by him? Wow. And again wow. This could take some figuring out! 4 May This morning we really blitzed this group: I watched from the hide, Mary watched the far holes (just in case), and Ron watched from up on the hillside to get behavioral data. Also, the movie camera is set and ready to record anyone pulling any funny business at the hole. As of now (800), however, nothing has happened! 9604 has been hanging around Garicking and apparently entered the most hole over by Mary briefly. However, no one has so much as looked at a hole here in the graveyard. So perhaps we can write off 8307's egg tossing as tossing an egg from one of their "practice" nests; i.e., these birds aren't quite ready to do it yet after all, and 8307 really was just clearing out the hole for subsequent potential use. (By the way, the 8307-9524 consort idea doesn't seem to work [see Ron's notes]; and even if it did I would find it really hard to accept that they have things worked out so well that they could toss out an egg—they "knew" wasn't theirs.) (While I'm on the subject I should note that, in