15 



Fig. 13. — Co- 

 coanut lunch 

 basket. The 

 cavity is 

 filled with 

 some food 

 mixture. 



caught on a wire basket. In thrusting its head in between the 

 wires for suet one of its moist eyes accidentally came in contact 

 with the frosty wire. Any one who has ever 

 touched his tongue to an iron bar full of frost 

 will appreciate what happened. The 

 eye froze to the wire and in its 

 struggles the bird tore out the 

 eyeball.^ This may be a very rare 

 occurrence, but where it has been 

 observed and published but once it 

 may have occurred many times un- 

 noted. The best suet receptacle is 

 a crocheted bag made of twine, such fig.h. — Asoap 



rack used for 



as is made by Mrs. E. O. Marshall suet. 



(see Fig. 15), and tacked to a 

 small, thin piece of board, or hung from a branch by a long 

 cord. Fine twine netting such as is used for shrimp nets or 

 crab nets might be utilized for this purpose. 



Ground Feeding. 

 Sparrows and other ground-frequenting birds 

 may be fed on the ground or on the snow, their 

 normal feeding place in winter, and such feeding 

 often becomes necessary at first to accustom 

 them to come to food receptacles; but food 

 thrown upon the ground is likely to be wasted, 

 spoiled by rain or covered b}^ snow and ice, 

 unless under cover. Also, birds feeding on the ground are 

 often endangered bv the attacks of cats or hawks. 



Fig. 15.— Cro- 

 cheted suet 

 ba;;. 



A Great Attraction. 

 There is no more popular refuge for ground birds than a 

 heap of brush. Bushes or tree limbs may be cut and piled on 

 the ground near the feeding places. Seed-bearing weeds may 

 be pulled up and mixed with the brush, or the pile may be 

 thatched with them, hayseed may be thrown into the pile, and 

 in winter it may be roofed over with branches of pine or other 



1 Fias, Feathers and Fur. Official Bulletin of the Minnesota Game and Fish Department, 

 No. 12, December, 1917, p. 5. 



