Teachers' Leaflet. 453 



If a duck be fed by placing its food in a wash basin of water, it will 

 thrust its bill in and then by opening and closing it with great rapidity 

 set up an eddy, which will bring the floating food in the circling current 

 where it may be strained out by the beak and swallowed. 



While studying beaks, attention should be paid to the nostrils situ- 

 ated /near their base. The sense of smell is not supposed to be very 

 greatly developed in fowls, but the nostrils are there (" The Bird Book," 

 Eckstorm, pp. 99-107; " Bird Life," Chapman, pp. 30-33; " Story of the 

 Birds," pp. 169, 213). 



LESSON V. 



THE FEET OF BIRDS ARE ADAPTED TO THE NEEDS OF THE BIRD. 



Purpose. — To cause the pupil to observe that birds are in form, size 

 and coloring well fitted to assist the bird in getting to its food as well 

 as at it. 



Again begin with the foot of the hen, and note how the toes are 

 long, the claws strong and the whole foot covered with horny scales, 

 which afford a thorough protection for the foot, whose chief 

 business is to scratch the earth to lay bare the seeds and in- 

 sects, which may be hiding there. Study the track and see 

 how many of the toes show, and also learn to number the 

 bird's toes thus. ' 



Note the differences between the foot of the hen and that of the 

 duck. Which of the duck's toes are united by the web? Here should 

 follow a lesson in elementary physics on the resistance of the web foot 

 against the water when used as a paddle as compared with the foot of a 

 hen where the toes are not webbed. 



As soon as the pupil comprehends that the duck's foot is a paddle, 

 develop the thought that the food of the duck is in the water, since it 

 is essentially a water bird. The fact that the hen is a land bird and the 

 duck a water bird is shown clearly in the way the two run. The hen 

 is a good runner, especially with the assistance of her wings, but the duck 

 is a very poor runner, as it has to waddle along, moving one side of the 

 body with each step. The reason for this is that the duck's legs are' 

 short and that they are set far back and far apart, so as to propel Ihei 

 body through the water like the wheel of a propeller (" Bird Life," Chap- 

 man, pp. 27-30; "Bird Book," Eckstorm, pp. 93-98; "Story of the 

 Birds," Baskett, pp. 161-168 and pp. 213-229). 



t 



