Page 338 - Our Vanishing Wild Life

316 OUR VANISHING WILD LIFE
their nest last spring, and have just finished rearing nine fine, health}' young birds. Whenever you see a woodrduck rise and fly in our Park, you may know that it is a wild bird. During the summer of 1912 a small flock of wild wood-ducks came every night to oiu* Wild-Fowl Pond, and spent the night there.
A year ago, a covey of eleven quail appeared in the Park, and have persistentlyremainedeversince. Lastfallandwintertheycameatleast twenty times to a spot within forty feet of the rear window of my office, in order to feed upon the wheat screenings that we placed there for them.
When we first occupied the Zoological Park grounds, in 1899, there was not one wild rabbit in the whole 264 acres. Presently the species appeared, and rabbits began to hop about confidently, all over the place. In1906,weestimatedthattherewereabouteightyindividuals. Then the 'marauding cats began to come in, and they killed off the rabbits untilnotonewastobeseen. Thereupon,weaddressedourselvestothose cats, in more serious earnest than ever before. Now the cats have dis- appeared; and one day last spring, as I left my office at six o'clock, every- one else having previously gone, I almost stepped upon two half-grown bunnies that had been visiting on the front door-mat.
When we were macadamizing the yards around the Elephant House, with a throng of workmen all about every day, a robin made its nest on the heavy channel-iron frame of one of the large elephant gates that swung to and fro nearly every day.
In 1900 we planted a young pine tree in front of our temporary office building, within six feet of a main walk; and at once a pair of robins nested in it and reared young there.
WILD CREATURES QUICKLY RESPOND TO FRIENDLY ADVANCES Chickadee and Chipmunk Tamed by Mr. Loring