6 JULY 1944, Page 14

Two Nurseries A queer, suggestive little incident has been watched

by an ardent bird-watcher. This is the tale. "Two chaffinches, a cock and a hen, flew towards me. The hen went straight to a thorn bush about 20 yards half-left of me. The cock, after eyeing me suspiciously fin a minute or two, went off to another thorn bush to my half-right. On investigating the half-left bush I was not surprised to find the hen sitting on her nest. Leaving her undisturbed, I %lent to the half-right bush and was surprised to find the cock also sitting on a nest." Now, flu male chaffinch is a good husband and father. He helps both to build and incubate, but for one pair to keep two nests, that is beyond explana. tion, for the chaffinch is the most careful and conscientious of nest. builders and does not, like the cock wren, run up a rough cock's nest in a day or two, much less persuade a hen to lay in it.