WHAT I HAVE DONE WITH BIRDS 



Neither does an authority who tells you certain kinds of birds 

 are the same size, male and female, mean anything except that 

 they are the same on an average. All accepted authorities state 

 that Black Vultures are the same size. My male of the Limber- 

 lost was a tough old bird, of what age no one could guess, his eyes 

 dim, his face wrinkled and leathery, his feet incrusted with scale, 

 and he was almost as large as his cousin, Turkey Buzzard. His 

 mate was a trim little hen of the previous year, much smaller and 

 in every way fresh compared with him, but they were mated and 

 raising their family. No ornithologist can do more than lay 

 down the general rules, and trust to your good sense to recognize 

 the exceptions. 



There are pairs of birds in which the male is a fine big speci- 

 men, the female small and insignificant. There are pairs where 

 the female is the larger and finer, and where they are the same 

 size. Sometimes they conform in color and characteristics to the 

 rules of the books and again they do not. Twice in my work I 

 have found a white English Sparrow, also a Robin, wearing a 

 large white patch on his coat. I once came within a breath of 

 snapping an old Robin of several seasons with a tail an inch long. 

 It did not appeal to me that he was a short-tailed species of Robin, 

 there is a way to explain all these things. The bird had been in 

 close quarters and relaxed his muscles, letting his tail go to save 

 his body. 



A large volume could be filled with queer experiences among 

 birds. Once I found a baby Robin that had been fed something 

 poisonous and its throat was filled with clear, white blisters, until 

 its beak stood wide open and it was gasping for breath. I punc- 

 tured the blisters with a needle and gave it some oil, but it died. 

 Another time I rescued a Robin that had hung five inches below 

 its nest by one leg securely caught in a noose of horsehair, until 



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