trees, being almost invariably too small to hold the aeorns oi' 

 the white oak. The woodpecker then does the next best thing 

 and stores the aeorns of the live oak. These are about two 

 inches long, narrow and tapering, and in their diameter weli, 

 adapted to the holes they are intended for, but they are fre- 

 quently so long that they project above the bark in the manner 

 shown in the illustration, producing a cTunous effect as their 

 white-tipped ends intermittingly reflect the glare of the sun- 

 light streaming through the waving branches overhead. Why 

 the woodpeckers do not use the acorns of the little scrub oak 

 which in size are much more suited to the holes, I do not 

 know. To me they taste quite as good as those of the "agri- 

 folia," but the large species is preferred alike by the Indian 

 and the woodpecker, and these two are excellent judges of nuts. 



On account of the hardness of the oak bark the crevices of 

 the surface or any other depression are at times utilized for 

 storing nuts. I found a white oak tree, evidently a favorite 

 with the birds, that was literally studded with acorns, the 

 crevices in the rough bark and the cavities in the broken off 

 branches were packed not with nuts but with the kernals. The 

 kernal of the nut when the shell is removed, splits into two or 

 three sharp-edged longitudinal sections*, and the Avoodpecker 

 after splitting the kernal into its natural sections, drives them 

 edge first into the crevices. To do this with the whole nut 

 would be almost impracticable, and if accomplished the nut 

 would l>e likely to be dislodged by the swaying of the tree. 

 This is an admiralile illustration of how a faculty for adapta- 

 tion to varied conditions may be but a poor provision for the 

 preservation of the race ; for the nuts so stored readily become 

 the prey of such nut-loving birds as the (juail, jay, and pigeon, 

 to say nothing of squirrels and chipmunks. 



Two or more pairs of birds may be seen s-toring nuts in 

 the same tree and so long as each pair keeps to its own terri- 

 tory there is perfect harmony, but should one intrude on the 

 other's domain the watchful male with a shrill outcry i)ounces 

 on the invader and drives him away. The female, as usual, 

 does most of the work and the male sits on the trunk of the 

 tree and advises, incidentally driving away and pilfering in- 

 truders, for it must be confessed they sometimes steal each 

 others stores, and as for the blue jay he would steal, and 

 probably does steal all he can lay his beak on. The jay some- 

 times hoards acorns on his own account, and after the manner 

 of the woodpeckers, but his whole manner suggests that such 

 work is irksome and that stealing is a more congenial method 

 of acquiring food. 



When the holes are duly filled the woodpecker has a store 

 of food that only rust or moth can corrupt. It is popularly 

 supposed that the woodpecker stores these nuts until they are 

 infected by larvae, but this like many other popular beliefs, is 

 only partially true. It is true that a large number of these 



