104 THE BIRDS OF OUR RAMBLES. 



eggs are very similar to those of the Rook. It 

 does not, however, breed in societies ; indeed, it 

 is one of the most solitary of birds, and when 

 once the young are safely reared is rarely seen, 

 even in the company of its mate so far as 

 English woods are concerned. It is almost om- 

 nivorous in diet, and consequently is apt to help 

 itself to poultry, eggs, and game whenever a 

 chance is presented. 



The woods are also the home of the Wood- 

 peckers. Not, perhaps, so much from a love for 

 seclusion do these birds frequent the forests, but 

 their insect food is derived almost entirely from 

 the trees. Of the three British species, perhaps 

 principally the GREAT S POTTED WOODPECKER (Piciis major) 

 is most widely distributed. His large size about 



known to 



breed in that of the Sonof Thrush and black and white 



i.u n j O- . 



Ireland. 



plumage, distinguish him from his congeners. Its 

 call-note, heard most frequently in spring, is a shrill 

 English whit. The next common species is the GREEN 

 WOODPECKER (Gecinus viridis], although in some 

 localities, especially in the southern woods, it is by 

 far the most widely distributed of the three. He is 

 the largest of them all, measuring from twelve to 

 fourteen inches in length, and differing from the 

 others in the general colour of his plumage, which is 

 green and yellow. So far as my own observations 

 go, this handsome bird is the least shy of the British 

 Woodpeckers, and the most often seen. I often 

 watch him fly from tree to tree in drooping flight, 

 and either settle on the bark at once, or perch 

 among the slender twigs, usually uttering his loud 

 laughing cry kyu kyu, or hi-hi-hi as soon as his 

 wings are at rest. It will be noticed that this 

 bird becomes exceptionally noisy before rain, just 



