The Food of Birds 



145 



satisfied.. As a result the narrow, shaft-Hke feathers of 

 the forehead frequently become saturated and stained 

 with juice and dusted over with pollen, and it is probable 

 that this bird plays an important part in the cross-fer- 

 tilization of several species of protea." 



Desmids and diatoms, those one-celled microscopic 

 organisms which are almost on the border-line between 



FOOD OF VARIOUS BIRDS. 



Fig. 110. — Sea-urchin. 



plants and animals, I have found in large numbers in 

 the digestive tracts of ducks and other birds which are 

 accustomed to find their food by sifting the mud at the 

 edges of ponds and lakes. 



Sponges, at least in a decayng state, are devoured by 

 crows, as I can testify from observation after dredging 

 expeditions in the Bay of Fundy. 



