Pond Life 
for it is made entirely of fish-bones. 
Kingfishers, like hawks and owls and 
many birds which live on other birds, or 
small mammals or fish, after swallowing 
their prey, bring up again the bones and 
other indigestible parts in little pellets. 
And these pellets, as they accumulate at 
the end of their burrow, serve as a nest 
on which the eggs are laid. The owls 
do exactly the same thing. They don’t 
really make any nest in the hollow trees 
in which they live, but lay their white 
eggs on the pile of accumulated ‘ cast- 
ings,’ as these pellets are called. Only 
the owl’s pellets, instead of being com- 
posed of fish-bones, consist entirely 
of the bones and skin of all the mice and 
rats and sparrows they have eaten. 
While you have been waiting for the 
coming of the kingfisher, if you have 
H 97 
