20 THE SECOND BOOK OF BIRDS 
store of food. He takes kernels of corn, if he 
can get them, or sunflower seeds, or nuts of 
various kinds. This keeps him very busy all the 
fall, and he has often been seen at the work. 
He will carry a nut to a tree and find a crack in 
the bark just big enough to hold it. He tries 
one after another till he finds one to fit. Then 
he hammers it in till it is secure, and leaves it 
there. Then in winter the same bird has been 
seen, when everything was covered with snow, 
to dig the hidden nuts out of their hiding-places 
and eat them. 
Many birds who do not migrate, but live in the 
same place the year round, provide for winter in 
the same way. So do squirrels and other ani- 
mals. It is pleasant to think that rough-barked 
trees, and knotholes, and hollows, are filled with 
food for the hungry birds. And if they had 
not that supply, they might starve, or be obliged 
to leave us. 
The Rep-sREASTED NuTHATcH is a little 
smaller than the white-breasted, and has a red- 
dish breast. His home is more toward the north, 
both East and West. He nests in Maine and 
other Northern States. His call note is different 
too. It sounds like the squawk of a toy trumpet. 
His habits are much like those of his bigger 
relative. 
