Familiar Studies of Wild Birds 



birds simply have to wait, for the most part on 

 their observation perches, from which they 

 dart out at short intervals for the insects that 

 float by in the air. They seldom stray far 

 from the nest, therefore, and are always on 

 hand to question any intruder. 



While the writer was photographing a fam- 

 ily of these birds, they would repeatedly dart 

 down past his head, giving resounding snaps 

 with their beaks. Their graceful and dexter- 

 ous sallies after insects furnished a sight worth 

 seeing. They would suddenly dart out in a 

 long curve, and a loud snap of the beak, sig- 

 nifying the capture of an insect, would be fol- 

 lowed by a continuous glide on and up to an- 

 other perch; or perhaps turning a complete 

 somersault they would return to their original 

 station. Long dashes of fifty yards or more 

 were frequent, and rarely did the luckless insect 

 escape. Sometimes in pursuing a fugitive fly 

 they performed several rapid revolutions with- 



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