Identifier: camerastudiesofw1911reed (find matches)
Title: Camera studies of wild birds in their homes
Year: 1911 (1910s)
Authors: Reed, Chester A, (Chester Albert. 1876-1912
Subjects: Birds Photography
Publisher: Boston : W.B. Clarke Co.
Contributing Library: Boston Public Library
Digitizing Sponsor: Boston Public Library

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he had been sitting. Shetried her best to lead me away; apparently she was veryseverely wounded for she limped with one leg, both wingsdragged on the ground and, every few steps, she would fallover as though exhausted. It was a very fine piece of act-ing and would deceive anyone not accustomed to it (stillmen who profess to be scientists say that birds and mam-mals have no intelligence; personally I believe that manybirds and many mammals have a higher degree of intelligence than some of those who claim everything is done byinstinct or imitation). Although I had found a great many nests of these birds,I was glad to locate this because I had never made photo-graphs of them and this nest offered an excellent opportun-ity to do so. The eggs were handsomely marked, as isusual with those of this species; they had little to concealthem from view, except their coloration, which harmonizedso well with the surroundings that, at ten feet distance itwas almost impossible to pick them out. 16 242
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Fig. 204. She sat there as calmly as if I were miles away^though I could have reached out and touched her. 243 As I have said, this nest was in a cleiring where therewas not a particle of shelter^ not even a spear of grass tokeep the suns rays off at any time during the day. On ex-ceedingly warm days^ I used often to think of this bird^ sit-ting there, panting, but faithful to her charges. Evenworse to endure than the sun, was the rain. At that time,there occurred four days of the heaviest rainfall we hadever experienced and I was very doubtful about her being-able to stand it. However, when the sun shone on the morn-ing of the fifth day, she slipped away from the nest, uponmy approach, none the worse for her drenching. Only onew^ho has been caught in the fields or woods, far from shel-ter,, in a driving rain, can appreciate the hardships thatbirds have to undergo at such times. Early one morning, I appeared with all my paraphernaliafor picture making. She slid off the eggs as usual a

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