for he has seen the young of this species following old birds of a distinct kind and clamouring to be fed by them.

The parasitic habits of another species of Molothrus, the M. bonariensis, are much more highly developed than those of the last, but are still far from perfect. This bird, as far as it is known, invariably lays its eggs in the nests of strangers; but it is remarkable that several together sometimes commence to build an irregular untidy nest of their own, placed in singular ill-adapted situations, as on the leaves of a large thistle. They never, however, as far as Mr. Hudson has ascertained, complete a nest for themselves. They often lay so many eggs — from fifteen to twenty — in the same foster-nest, that few or none can possibly be hatched. They have, moreover, the extraordinary habit of pecking