HIS INTELLIGENCE 85 
branch above that they made a little roof like a 
tent over it. 
Another way a bird shows reason is in seeing 
the advantage of a new place. A pair of swal- 
lows lived far out in the West, hundreds of 
miles from any house. They had no doubt 
always nested in a cave, or hole ina tree. But 
one day they found a house put up. It was 
a mere shed, to be used as a blacksmith shop, by a 
party of men who were looking over the country. 
At once the birds saw how nice it would be 
to have a roof over their heads. And although 
there was a big fire, and the noise of men at 
work, they built the nest over the anvil, and 
reared the family in safety. 
Woodpeckers have shown that they can learn. 
Some of them have found an easier way to get 
food than to dig through the bark of trees 
for’ it. 
The flicker, or golden-winged woodpecker, 
has learned that ants and other insects are good 
to eat, and now he does not think of digging 
into bark any more. 
The red-headed woodpecker has learned to 
catch flies ikea common flycatcher. The yellow- 
bellied, or sapsucker, cuts holes in the trees, and 
eats the insects that come to feed on the sweet 
sap that drips from them. 
