Page:The New International Encyclopædia 1st ed. v. 14.djvu/645

* NICOYA. i51 NIDIFICATION. (Map: Central America, EG). It is about 00 niiles long and 20 fo ;iO miles wide, and is lined on both sides with high and picturesque moun- tains. On its eastern shore lies I'unta Arenas, the only port of entry on the Pacific coast of Costa Rica. NICTHEROY, nek'taroi'. A town of Brazil, in the State of lio de Janeiro. It is situated on the east side of the entrance to the bay, op- posite the city of Rio de Janeiro (Map: Brazil, J 8). The town is not attractive. l)Ut it is surrounded by delightful suburbs, where the resi- dences of the wealthy classes are situatad. Prior to 189-t Xietheroy was the capital of Kio de Janeiro. The population was estimated in 1898 at 20.000. NIC'UM, .ToiiN (18,51-). An American clergyman and author, born at Winnenden, ■Viirtteniberg. lie studied at iluhlenberg Col- lege, Allentown, Pa., and at the Philadelphia Theological Seminary. In 1870 he became pas- tor at Frofkville. Pa., but two years later re- moved to Philadelphia, where he remained two years, and then went to Syracuse, N. Y. In 18S7 he took charge of the Saint John's Evan- gelical Lutheran Church in Rochester. His books include History of the Xeic York Muusterium (1884), and Coiifcssiotial History of the Lutheran Church in the United States (1891). NIDIFICATION (from Lat. nidificare. to make a nest, from nidus, nest -{- facere. to make) . Strictly, the act and process of nest-building. In the present article, however, the word will be broadly interpreted, so as to include the entire series of acts, instincts, and adaptations connected with the provision of a temporary breeding-home, nidus, or 'nest' for their eggs, embryos, or young, and the care of offspring, by the parents of animals generally. A nest differs from an animal's ordinary resi- dence in that it is not made primarily for the animal's o«-n use. but for that of expected young. In some instances it is mainly a con- venient lying-in place for the mother; in others, merely a means for the safety and comfort of eggs or helpless embryos ; but often it combines these purposes and adds to them that of a nursery. The last phase is illustrated by cer- tain social insects, some birds, a few mammals, and in human society. In the lowest ranks of invertebrate life, and to some extent among animals of comparatively high organization, the eggs, or 'spawn,' are simply voided into the water or earth and left to survive or perish, unregarded by the parent. Some animals, however, pro- duce comparatively few eggs, protected against many dangers by being placed within one or more envelopes or 'capsules.' (See Egg.) An- other wides])read method is that of retaining the embryo in the maternal body until it is able to shift for itself. This is seen in many inver- tebrates and in some fisl^es. These animals are therefore known as ovoviviparous. Maternal (^ake of Eggs. An advance upon this is made by a large class of creatures which carry their eggs about with them until they hatch, and in some cases even continue to care for the young, although they make no nest. Examples of this are to be found in all classes of animals, from mollusks and crustaceans up to a few of the lowest birds; and some of the brooding habits and physical adaptations thus manifested are surprising. Thus the female argonaut (q.v. ) has developed an elaborate boat- like shell in which her eggs and end)ryos rest secure; tlie violet-snail (q.v.) (Janthina) drags hers beneatli a raft; and other instances are cita- ble. Spiders' eggs are covered with silk, forming a bag or ball of various shapes anil colors. (See Si'iDEK. ) Crustaceans almost universally keep their eggs with them. Some insects inclose their eggs in packets and take care of them, much aa do the crabs, but most insects simply deposit their eggs so that the resulting larva" shall be within reach of suitable food, and do not know what becomes of them. It is nut until the high- est grades of Hymenoptera are reached — the wasps, bees, and ants — that anything which may be called a 'nest' is made in preparation for the eggs or young, or any parental care is exerted. (See Ant; Bee; Wasp; Insect, para- graph Social Insects.) The eijual of this is hardly to lie found among vertebrates until man is reached — and even then only among men in a somewhat advanced stage of culture. Fishes axd Reptiles. Among fishes a certain amount of instinct is adapted to the best interests of the young. Thus many kinds migrate long distances to seek the water or fooil proper for the young, but, a suitable general surrounding having been obtained, little or no further care is taken. Only a few species build nests. Certain kinds make very crude nests, such as the hollow scooped out in the sand (jn some warm, clean, sunn}' bottom by the male suntish, or the more elaborate structures of sticklebacks and gobies (qq.v.). Amphibians and reptiles rarely make anj'thing which may be calleil a nest, but some care for their eggs in very curious ways else- where described. Birds. The nest-making of birds is most familiar and perfect, yet it is only among the higher forms that it is manifested to any great extent. In no respect is there greater diversity among birds than in the structure of the nest. As a rule, its character is closely associated with the intelligence of the bird, modified more or less by the necessities of the situation and the structure of the bird's bill and feet. The nests of ostriches and other Ratitoe are mere accumulations of sand or earth, or cavities scraped in the ground. The nests of the lowest water-birds consist of burrows in the ground, or the eggs are laid on the bare earth or rock. Good examples are the guillemots (q.v.). The king-penguin treats its eggs in the same way. Among those a little higher in the scale, nests of sea-weed and coarse grass loosely put together make a home for the young. Most of the ducks and geese build nests of grass, and often in- clude feathers from their own bodies, a habit carried to the extreme in the eider-duck (q.v.). Few of the wading' birds build nests, the herons coming nearest to it with a platform of sticks. The grouse and quail, turkey and pheasant, all scrape together nests of leaves and grass on the ground. The allied mound-birds are remarkable for collecting great heaps of decaying vegetable matter, in which the eggs are laid, the heat caused by the decay ripening them. Doves and pigeons usually build a very frail nest of twigs, but a few species are ground breeders. Eagles, hawks, and 'ultures construct coarse, heavy nests of sticks and twigs on large trees or cliffs, while owls often resort to hollows in