A HEWER OF WOOD 



NOT the least of the many benefits which 

 birds confer upon man is the unceasing 

 warfare which the majority of them wage 

 upon insects. Insects may be said to domi- 

 nate the earth ; they fill every nook and cranny of it, 

 preying upon all other living things which they out- 

 number. If this is the state of affairs when hundreds of 

 millions of insects are devoured daily by their arch-foes, 

 the fowls of the air, what would it be were there no 

 birds ? The earth would certainly not be inhabited by 

 men. 



Most insectivorous birds specialise, that is to say, lay 

 themselves out to catch a particular class of insect. 

 Swifts, swallows, and flycatchers have developed pheno- 

 menal mastery over the air, so prey upon flying insects. 

 Mynas, hoopoes, " blue jays," magpie-robins, and others 

 feed upon the hexapod hosts that crawl on the ground. 

 Not a few birds confine their attention to the creeping 

 things that inhabit the bark of trees. Such are the 

 wryneck, the tree-creeper, and the woodpecker. Of 

 these the woodpecker is chief. A mighty insect hunter 

 is he, one who tracks down his quarry and drags him 

 out of his lair. How must the insects which lie hidden 

 away in the crevices of the bark tremble as they hear 



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