Birds 165 



heap of soft earth without any Hning whatever to 

 its nest. It was bright-green above, with crimson 

 throat, and yellowish-white below. The wings were 

 blackish, while the flanks showed tufts ot pink feath- 

 ers, and it made a whirring noise when it flew. 



While William was visiting the pine grove on the 

 mountain one day, he saw a flock of birds eating the 

 seeds out ot the pine cones. On creeping close to 

 them, he noticed that they were crossbills and very 

 much like the white-winged crossbill sometimes 

 seen in Mrginia during the winter, only their bills 

 were heavier. It was interesting to see how skil- 

 fully they worked and how happy they were, feed- 

 ing together. 



The egrets, glossy ibis, and white ibis were hand- 

 some birds. The wood ibis was white with a bluish 

 head and neck. It had the peculiar habit of danc- 

 ing in the water to muddy it and make the fish come 

 to the surface, when it would catch them. 



One of the queerest birds ot all was the snake 

 bird, which was w^ell named because it was a yard 

 long, including its very slender neck and tail. It 

 was greenish-black above, black below, and lived on 

 fish, for which it could dive at least a hundred yards. 

 Its nest was built of sticks and leaves in swamps, 

 and it laid from three to five bluish eggs. 



