THE GREEN WOODPECKER. 



293 



from the Nuthatch who has wedged a hazel-nut into the 

 bark of an oak, than from the hammering of a "Wood- 

 pecker. This bird is far too wise to waste its time and 

 blunt its beak by pecking at wood hard enough to make 

 much resonance. And indeed what motive could it have 

 for so doing ? Wood does not enter into its diet, nor does 

 sound wood contain the insects on which it feeds. Often 

 indeed it may be observed ascending, by a series of starts, 



the trunk of a tree, inclining now a little to the right, and 

 now to the left, disappearing now and then on the side 

 farthest from the spectator, and again coming into view 

 somewhat higher up. Nor is its beak idle ; this is em- 

 ployed sometimes in dislodging the insects which lurk in 

 the rugged bark, and sometimes in tapping the trunk in 

 order to find out whether the wood beneath is s'ound or 



