BIRDS. 



289 



birds which are smaller than themselves, and the young 

 cuckoo, when hatched, manages to get the greater part 

 of the food, and frequently pushes the rightful heirs of 

 the nest over its borders. The belted kingfisher is the 

 common species in the North. It has a most curious 

 aspect, the head appearing as large as the body. It 

 makes its nest at the extremity of a horizontal burrow 

 in the earthy bank of a stream or lake. 



Fia. 238. 



KINGFISHER (Alcedo ispida). 



Pici. Woodpeckers are of all sizes, from nineteen 

 inches in length down. They are expert climbers, sink- 

 ing their strong, hooked claws into the bark of trees 

 and supporting themselves by the aid of their stiff and 

 inflexible tail-feathers; they are thus able to climb per- 

 pendicular surfaces with great ease. The beak is straight 

 and chisel-edged, and cuts through the bark, while the 

 very long tongue, covered with a sticky saliva, pene- 

 trates the hole, seeking the larvae of insects. Their nests 

 are in the trunks of trees, and they are found all over the 

 N t 26 



