224 



The Bird 



More than a single vohime could l)e filled with in- 

 teresting facts about the l^ills of birds and the uses to 

 which the}^ are put, — liardl}' any two species using their 

 beaks in a similar manner. The general way in which 

 the vast subject of the adaptation of the bird to its needs 

 and to its surroundings is treated in this \-olume will, 

 it is hoped, be a stimulus to the reader to observe for 

 himself, — to discover the thousand and one facts to 



Fig. 162. — Beak of Snapping-turtle. (roiirte.«y of N. Y. Zoological Society.) 



which Nature has not yet given us the key. Our lan- 

 guage is too often lacking in phrases expressing delicate 

 shades of meaning, and thus we are compelled to identif}" 

 structures among the creatures which rank below us 

 with portions of our own anatomy corresponding only in 

 relative position or a general vague likeness of function. 

 We are accustomed to speak of the mouth of a starfish, 

 the arms of a sea-anemone, the foot of a snail: in these 

 respective cases, structures specialized for receiving food, 



