28 ] How to Understand the Birds 



beak resembles a pick rather than a scoop, and it strikes efficiently 

 into the soil for insects or seeds. 



Another bird with a sharp, seed-eating beak is the sparrow. As 

 for the woodpecker, its beak is virtually a chisel. You may spy 

 one of these birds drilling for insects, or come upon the evidence 

 where a woodpecker has left a series of holes in a tree trunk. 



These are but a few examples of the close relationship between 

 the style of a bird's beak and the kind of food that it eats. Children 

 will get the point at once if you tell them the delightful Aesop 

 fable of the stork and the fox. The stork, having been served soup 

 in a shallow dish by his host, a fox, gets his revenge by inviting 

 the fox to dinner and serving it in a narrow-necked vessel down 

 which its own long bill fits perfectly. 



Getting food for the adult and feeding the young are the 

 two basic uses of the beak. But it has other important functions: 

 It is a tool for gathering nesting material and digging nesting sites 

 and it often serves as a weapon of attack or defense. It also enables 

 many birds to do an effective job of preening and smoothing their 

 plumage and keeping it clean. 



If the hen you watched during a storm could be observed after 

 the rain stopped, you might see her using her beak to oil her 

 feathers. There is an oil gland on her back, just at the base of 

 the tail feathers. She presses the gland with her beak to force out 

 oil; then she rubs the beak over the surface of her feathers and 

 passes it through them. Now her "oilskin slicker" is ready for the 

 next downpour. A number of other birds, including waterfowl, 

 use this same oiling method. 



The parrot's curved bill is unique in construction and use, as 

 it is a first-class climbing aid. The upper mandible, or beak, is 

 movable, being connected to the bird's skull by a hinge. When 

 the parrot climbs, it uses this mandible as a hook to support its 

 body while its feet find a new resting place. 



Feet Are Versatile Too 



Versatile as the beak is, the bird's feet are equally valuable 

 tools. Wading birds, such as flamingoes and herons, have extremely 



