130 OUR RARER BIRDS 



when on the wing, but always when at rest, either sitting on 

 the ground, or on a dead stump, or when clinging to the tree 

 trunks. When alarmed it utters a sharp and oft-repeated 

 metallic clicking-note, and frequently taps very rapidly and 

 loudly on the branches. When you examine the Wryneck 

 you will find that it differs considerably from the Woodpeckers 

 in its appearance. In the first place, its plumage is soft and 

 beautifully mottled like that of the Goatsucker ; then its 

 beak is not formed for digging into decayed wood and bark, 

 and its tail is as soft and pliable as that of a Eobin, instead of 

 being stiff and pointed as is the case with the Woodpeckers. 

 Still the Wryneck is beautifully adapted to its ways of life, 

 as we shall fully learn after studying its habits and economy. 

 The Wry neck obtains its food almost exclusively with its tongue, 

 and its tail is never used as a support, for the bird rarely 

 climbs about the trunks or branches. Nevertheless its outer 

 toe is reversible, like that of most Picarian birds, and its feet 

 are formed for climbing ; but this is doubtless a long-inherited 

 character from the common ancestors of the Wrynecks and 

 the Woodpeckers. If you watch the Wryneck closely when 

 in the branches, you will find that it sits like any other 

 ordinary perching bird ; and should you observe it on the 

 rugged trunk of a tree, you will invariably find that it sits 

 sideways on the bark and never attempts to climb like a 

 Woodpecker, but pursues a sidelong course when exploring 

 the nooks and crannies for insects. Its plumage is eminently 

 protective in colour, and harmonises closely with the brown 

 bark and silver lichens. The Wryneck may sometimes be 

 seen frequenting the slender branches, picking insects from 

 the leaves, and occasionally fluttering into the air to catch 

 them as they pass by. When flying from tree to tree, or 

 from one orchard to another, its course is undulating, some- 

 thing like a Woodpecker's. 



The food of the Wryneck is composed of various kinds of 



