WOODPECKERS. 53 



Our bird is more discreet, and never says any- 

 thing more than cook^ cook, as it wanders from 

 one shady perch to another. It is an exceedingly 

 shy bird, hiding its rich, bronzed plumage most 

 jealously in the thick foliage. It is not a parasite, 

 like the English bird, but always builds a nest 

 for its own eggs. 



We have seven species of these peculiar birds 

 which obtain their living by digging the burrow- 

 ing larvae of insects out of their lairs in the solid 

 trunks of timber trees. Their bills are chisel- 

 pointed and of great strength, their feet are 

 eminently adapted for grasping and climbing, and 

 their rigid tail feathers are pointed to form a 

 fulcrum for their bodies while they stand erect 

 at their w^ork of chipping into the firm wood. 



The Downy, Hairy, and Black - backed Wood- 

 peckers are all spotted, black and white birds 

 which stay with us winter and summer. During 

 the dreary months they add to the little life 

 found in the lonely wood - lands by flitting 



8 



