BIRDS OF KANSAS 13 



Oil their feet a pair of iron claws that can be thrust into 

 the wood, yet not without fear of slipping. The Wood- 

 pecker has no such fear. His toes are arranged in pairs, 

 with sharp claws, two in front and two behind, which bite 

 into the bark or wood and insure " good footing." 



But we must not conclude that all birds that climb 

 will have yoke-toes like the Woodpecker, for the Nut- 

 hatches and Creepers have a foot more like a robin. 



The fish-hooks that fill so large a place in the life of a 

 boy when the ice has cleared from the creeks and the days 

 are warm and inviting, are not unlike the instruments 

 used by one of our American birds, the Osprey or Fish- 

 hawk, for the same purpose. ( See cut No. 2.) The fol- 

 lowing account of the Osprey is given by Wilson : 



"The flight of the Fish-hawk, his maneuvers while in 

 search of fish, and his manner of seizing his prey, are de- 

 serving of particular notice. In leaving the nest he usu- 

 ally flies direct till he comes to the sea, then sails around 

 in many curving lines, turning sometimes in the air as on 

 a pivot, apparently without the least exertion, rarely mov- 

 ing his wings, his legs extended in a straight line behind, 

 and his remarkable length and curvature, or bend of wing, 

 distinguishes him from all other hawks. The height at 

 which he thus elegantly glides is various, from one hun- 

 dred to one hundred fifty and two hundred feet, sometimes 

 much higher, all the while calmly reconnoitering the face 

 of the deep below. Suddenly he is seen to check his 

 course, as if struck by a particular object, which he seems 

 to survey for a few moments with such steadiness that he 

 appears fixed in the air, flapping his wings. This object, 

 however, he abandons, or rather, the fish he had in his 

 eye disappeared, and he is again seen sailing around as 

 before. Now his attention is again arrested, and he de- 

 scends with great rapidity, but ere he reaches the surface. 



