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South America, but the tongue of the woodpecker presents a 

 structure not visible in the aut-eater, for on carefully examining 

 the top of the woodpecker's tongue, we find that it ends in a 

 sharp horny point, and that on each side of this sharp horny 

 point there are some small barbs directed backwards, reminding 

 me somewhat cf the " snatch " made of fish hooks which is used 

 for poaching salmon. Now we find that the hyoid, or 

 tongue-bone, which works this marvellous tongue, extends not 

 only as far back as the base of the head, as is the case with most 

 birds, but is actually prolonged right over the top of the head, and 

 is firmly fixed into the skull, at the base of the beak, on the 

 right side. The reader can easily realize this curious structure 

 if lie imagines the tongue-bone in his own head to be extended 

 backwards on each side of the head to the poll. These two 

 bones then run parallel with each other in a depression on the 

 top of the skull, and are finally inserted into the bone of the 

 forehead just above the right eye. This tongue of the wood- 

 pecker, therefore, may be said to be worked by two highly 

 elastic steel springs, and I have no doubt that in life the bird 

 is enabled to protrude and draw back his tongue with amazing 

 celerity. 



But I have not yet done with the numerous mechanisms in the 

 head of the woodpecker ; a further ingenious contrivance was, 

 1 believe, first described by Mr. Bowman, of Wrexharn, who 

 writes thus : 



" In the back part of the palate," he says, " is inserted a 

 longitudinal groove, which tapers to a point outwards, and is 

 fringed with stiff hairs pointing towards the throat. Without 

 this provision it would be difficult to conceive how the bird 

 could so easily and speedily detach its food from the barbs of the 

 tongue as it is known to do, particularly as the groove in the 

 palate is placed much too far backward for the tip of the former, 

 in the natural position, even to reach it, and even if it could draw 

 it in so far the peculiar direction of the hairs would prevent their 

 action. We must, therefore, infer (though the motion is per- 

 formed with such celerity that we can never expect to observe 

 it), that the tongue is taken into the mouth in a reflected posi- 

 tion, like that of the frog, and that the tip of it is drawn through 

 the groove, the sharp hairs of which scrape off the insects from 

 the barbs, while the deglutition is assisted by the tubercles on 

 the surface of the tongue during the first part of the operation of 

 drawing it into the mouth." 



The stomach of my woodpecker is simply a fleshy bag, and I 

 was pleased to find it full of food. On opening this bag-like 

 stomach, I discovered a mass of a black-looking substance, which 



