118 ANIMALS AND INSECTS 



we work. They are, in fact, like us in many ways, — 

 these little birds that look so different. The father 

 and mother birds love each other, and wait upon 

 each other and work together to take care of their 

 babies as our own fathers and mothers do. 



Aft?er the nest has been built and the eggs laid, 

 and the mother bird is sitting upon them, the father 

 bird feeds her and sings to her. When she leaves 

 the nest, he sometimes takes her place so the eggs 

 will not become cold. After the eggs have hatched 

 both the father and the mother bird work all day 

 to find food enough for their hungry children. 



Who has seen four baby robins reaching out of 

 the nest their great wide-open mouths? At first it 

 seems as if there was nothing but mouths until you 

 see the queer, feather less bodies. They are hungr}^ 

 all the time. No matter how often father or mother 

 robin comes with a worm, the baby robins still 

 clamor for more. But they grow fast, and soon the 

 down on their bodies is replaced by feathers. 



The next time a robin alights on the lawn, watch 

 him and see if he is not trying to catch worms. His 

 eyes are so sharp that he can see the slightest move- 

 ment of the earth above a worm where it is working 

 in its tunnel under ground. He hops about and 

 turns his head this way and that. Then, suddenly, 

 down goes the robin's beak and up comes the earth- 

 worm. Very slowly the earthworm comes out of 

 the ground. It holds on to the earth with the 

 different rings or segments of its body, trying so 

 hard to keep itself down in the ground. But the 

 robin is the stronger, and bracing himself with his 



