226 



in one of the illustrations, with a mullet in its bill, was 

 more considerate for she lit on a stick thrust into the bank 

 for that purpose and allowed Mr. R. H. Beebe to take sev- 

 eral pictures of her. 



Young kingfishers are very comical birds both in appear- 

 ance and in actions. At an early age, they are entirely cov- 



Fig. 192. Little Kingfishers are very 

 cry during the early stages of their life. 



'spiney^^ orpin-feath- 



ered with coarse pin-feathers, giving them a bristly appear- 

 ance like little porcupines. They remain in the nest about 

 three weeks at the end of which time they closely resemble 

 their parents in plumage. Although six or seven of them have 

 to occupy rather cramped quarters in their home, it does not 

 seem to develop brotherly love to any great extent. They 

 always seem to be biting at one another. On one occasion 

 when I had seven of them side by side on a rail, a youngster 

 on one end grabbed the fellow next to him by the wing; 

 this one seized the next and so on along the whole row, the 

 seven of them finally going to the ground in a connected 

 tangle. Undoubtedly, their rough actions hasten their de- 



