DEPENDABLE BIRD HOUSES 



distance to be but a mottled whitish bark is in reality 

 a mass of short and extremely sharp thorns, entirely 

 covering the trunk and limbs. No monkey or snake 

 could climb many inches up this thorn-covered sur- 

 face to secure his prey. He is satisfied to give up 

 the puzzle and his discomfiture and seek the tooth- 

 some eggs and birdlings in other places. Birds of 

 every variety native to these tropical islands soon 

 realize that nature has provided them a well-pro- 

 tected stronghold, and they are quick to take advan- 

 tage of it. 



"We may not be able to provide thorn-covered 

 trunks for the trees of our lawns and gardens, but 

 we can profit by nature's lesson, and carry out 

 many practical devices for protecting our native 

 birds from cats, squirrels, and other enemies quite 

 as effectively as they are defended from the snakes 

 and monkeys in tropical jungles. The birds are 

 quick to appreciate the protected houses, whether 

 they are boxes set upon poles in the garden, or odd 

 contrivances for nest building, situated in the 

 branches of trees or under the eaves of garden build- 

 ings. 



To guard the nesting places among the tree 

 branches, it is not always possible to give safety 

 from cats by encircling the tree trunk with zinc, or 

 with a broad board to act as a head bumper when 



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