ay well be satisfied if six or eight pairs of them are mated.
The truth of this statement is proved by the fact that on the local
market a single Goose is worth about one dollar, while a pair of mated
Geese will readily bring five dollars.

{54}

_Unmated Birds._--A little reflection will make the student realize the
fact that out in the fields and woods, in the swamps and on the
mountains, on the beaches, as well as far away on the ocean, there are
many birds that are not mated. Among them are widows and widowers,
heartfree spinsters and pining bachelors. Just what per cent. of the
bird life is unmated in any one season it would, of course, be
impossible to tell. The information which the writer has gathered by a
careful census of a certain species in a given limited territory
enabled him to determine that in this particular case only about
three-fifths of the individuals are mated any one season.

_Polygamy Among Birds._--As with mankind, some races have
well-developed tendencies toward polygamy. In the warmer regions of
the United States there dwells a great, splendid, glossy Blackbird, the
Boat-tailed Crackle. The nest of this bird is a wonderfully woven
structure of water plants and grasses and is usually built in a bush
growing in the {55} water. When you find one nest of the Crackle you
are pretty certain to find several other occupied nests in the
immediate vicinity. From three to six of these marvellous cradles,
with their quiet brown female owners, often appear to be watched over
by one shining, iridescent lord Crackle, who may be husband to them
all. He guards his own with jealous care. Evidently, too, he desires
the whole country to know that he is the most handsome, ferocious bird
on the earth; for all day long his hoarse shoutings may be heard, and
when he launches into the air, the sound of the ponderous beating of
his wings can, on a still day, be heard half a mile away, across the
lake.

One of the best-known polygamous birds of North America is the Wild
Turkey. Go into any part of the country where this fast-disappearing
game bird still survives, and the experienced local gunners will tell
you that in the mating season you will usually find a gobbler
accompanied by two or more Turkey hens. When a female gets ready to
make her nest she slips away from her sultan and the other members {56}
of the seraglio and, going to some broom-sedge field or open place in
the woods, constructs her nest