REPORT OF SOCIETY 35 



The Yellowhammer or Flicker has taken to the ground and Uves largely in the 

 contents of anthills. The wooden homes of the woodpeckers are frequently 

 accepted by other birds, after one season of occupancy bj* the builders. Blue- 

 birds, swallows, flycatchers, and the small owls show their respect for the ability 

 of the avian architects, and suggest to us their desire for a shelter which we may 

 easily provide for them. 



The order IMacrochires have, as the name indicates, wings that are large in 

 proportion to the weight of the body. The Nighthawks and Whip-poor-wills, 

 the Chimney Swifts, and the Hummingbirds make up a group showing little 

 similarity. The first two are known as goatsuckers, probably from their wide 

 mouths, and habit of haunting pasturefields in the twilight. Their food, like 

 that of all the other members of the group, is the insect life they capture while 

 on the wing. The Hummingbirds take also the nectar of flowers along with 

 their small insect visitors. 



We now come to the last and largest order of birds, the Passeres or Perching 

 Birds, containing nearly as many kinds as all the other orders together, and 

 among them those best known and most important to man. Nearly all have 

 calls for their mates and companions, and many produce distinctly musical 

 songs, repeated at long or at short intervals. The Flycatchers differ from other 

 insect eaters in their habit of watching for their prej- and darting upon it from 

 a prominent perch, to which they usually return again and again. Their food 

 is commonly captured near the ground while flying, but wingless forms are not 

 despised. These eminently useful birds are known to us as Phoebes, Pee wees. 

 Kingbirds, and such Flycatchers as the Crested, the Scissortailed, the Olivesided 

 and several others. Some build their homes about houses and bridges, others 

 in small trees in open fields, while others prefer the depths of the forest. Cloths, 

 caterpillars, ants, wasps, flies, crickets and grasshoppers make up their common 

 bill of fare. 



In Canada we have only one species of Lark, although it varies in shade 

 and size. Those found in the forested districts of the east are large and dark, 

 with strong plumage markings, while the prairie varieties are smaller and paler. 

 The Horned Lark is about one half larger than the house sparrow, with grayish 

 upper plumage, yellow throat with a black spot across the breast and a black 

 horn-like tuft above each eye. It has a slight but sweet song in early spring, 

 and is a valuable destroyer of weed seeds in the open fields from which the snow 

 is disappearing. 



The Crow Family plays important paints in almost all parts of the world 

 and are prominent and well known birds. It includes the Raven, Crow, Mag- 

 pie, and Jays in Canada. Ravens are plentiful near fishing villages in Western 

 Nova Scotia, but avoid all evidences of civilization in the interior of the contin- 



