246 BIRDS OF SOMERSETSHIRE. 



a tree, which a deep keel would interfere with. The 

 tail also is of considerable service to them, the 

 middle feathers of which, in all the Picidse except 

 the Wryneck, are very stiff and strong and pointed 

 at the end : on these feathers the hird is in the habit 

 of resting, when, in the course of its search for food 

 on the upright stem of a tree, it finds it necessary to 

 throw its head much back. The tongue is another 

 great peculiarity of the Woodpecker family, as it is 

 capable of being thrust forward to a considerable 

 distance beyond the end of the beak : the tip of the 

 tongue is covered with a glutinous substance secreted 

 by the bird ; by this means it is able to capture small 

 insects amongst the bark of trees, which it would 

 not be able to reach with its beak, but shooting out 

 its long tongue it reaches these small insects, which, 

 sticking to the glutinous substance, become the 

 prey of the bird. The narrow keel of the Wood- 

 peckers, as I said before, considerably curtails their 

 power of flight ; consequently these birds seldom 

 attempt a longer flight than from one tree to another 

 in a well-wooded district. Should a Woodpecker be 

 approached when engaged in climbing a tree it 

 seldom seeks safety in flight, but dodges behind the 

 stem or branch which it may be on, and thus keeps 

 itself out of sight. The British Woodpeckers are 

 now said to include nine species besides the 

 Wryneck ; but of these nine it is very doubtful if 

 one, the Black Woodpecker, has ever been obtained 



